A New Beginning
by uberparagon
Summary: Life had been hard for Cinder and Neo. The sisters moved constantly for their parents' work, making any kind of meaningful relationship with anyone impossible. But perhaps meeting Ruby and Yang could change that. Maybe this time things could finally work out. (CinderRuby/BakedAlaska)
1. Chapter 1

Heavy.

Everything around her was heavy. The rain pounded down on the car's windows, the torrential downpour mirroring the thoughts of the black-haired girl sitting in the back seat. She sat there, her sisters head resting on her shoulder. The two young women rode in silence, thinking back to the events of the last week.

* * *

"_I don't wanna go!"_

"_You said we wouldn't have to move again!"_

_The petite, pink-brown haired girl's cries hung in the air. Her parents had just informed her and her sister that for the fifth time in four years the family would be moving yet again._

_Tears began to spring up in her eyes, her head cast downwards. Her sister sat beside her, offering no words but a consoling hand on the shoulder. _

These constant moves had been hard on the girls. Each relocation forcing them to leave behind whatever life or friends they had managed to make for themselves. After the third move both sisters had been affected greatly. Cinder had become rough, she would hold people at arms length, not letting people in. Neo became incredibly shy, scared to get close to people, lest she be moved yet again. It became hard for the sisters to make friends so they instead spent most of their time together.

* * *

The car slowed to a stop and the sound of the rain became louder as the car's engine went silent. Cinder turned to the left and saw a small, blue house on a small plot of land.

She had never been to Patch but the small island would be her home for the next year, or until her parents decided to move again, whichever came first. This would be her second senior year of high school, having been held back due to her constant moving.

"Come along Neo, let's get our things settled." Cinder beckoned to her sister, leading her out of the car and into the house. They crossed the threshold together, Neo lowering her umbrella as they stepped inside.

The front door opened into a modest living room. The walls were painted a dull blue and the floor was covered in a royal blue carpet. Across from the sisters was an archway leading to the dining room with the kitchen visible through a small opening in the wall. Along one wall of the living room rose a staircase leading upstairs to a hallway containing four doors. A bedroom for each girl, one for their parents, and of course a bathroom.

After getting a look around the house the girls lugged their bags up the stairs and began to unpack the clothes they had brought along with them.

Shortly after everything was settled the sisters heard their father call up to them "Girls, dinner's here, hope you're feeling like pizza."

The family ate in silence, the only sound the chewing of food and the rain still pouring down outside. Attempting to ease some of the tension in the room the girls' mother decided to start a conversation.

"So are you two all settled in?" Her question hung in the air. The two girls stopped eating and looked to their mother. Neo gave a very non-comital shrug and Cinder simply nodded her head.

"Looking forward to school tomorrow?" their father asked. The two both sighed inwardly, Cinder nearly whispering a depressed yeah and Neo just looked down at her lap.

"Come on you two, you guys get a fresh start, and this time we'll be here for a long time," their father smiled at them. The sisters again sighed inwardly; having been told the exact same thing the last two times they had moved.

They both looked back up at their father, half-hearted smiles appearing on their faces.

The meal continued in silence until everyone had finished eating. Gathering the dishes, Cinder made her way to the kitchen. As she washed them she heard her mother call to her, "Remember you have school tomorrow, try not to stay up too late." Cinder scowled at the sink in front of her, scrubbing the plates harder.

She didn't want to go to school, she didn't want to have to meet new people, she didn't want to have to make new friends. Every move ended up the same way. She'd go into school not knowing anyone and unable to approach anybody so she'd end up being an outcast. Every time it was all the same.

As she finished up her chores she headed upstairs to prepare for bed. After getting into her night clothes she slid into bed hoping that maybe this time it wouldn't be like a repeat of all the other times. _Yeah right._

**A/N: Hello, so this is my first attempt at writing so I encourage any and all feedback. I plan on making this story at least ten chapters long and hope to get up to at least 3,000 words a chapter. Any suggestions or criticisms are welcome, hope you enjoy.**


	2. Chapter 2

The morning came much too soon for Cinder. She stretched out in her bed, looking out the window at the view of the island. She had to admit, watching the sun rise on the ocean was quite a nice thing to have greet you in the morning.

With a groan she pushed herself out of bed and softly made her way to her closet. She picked out a dark red long sleeve and a pair of black jeans and made her way over to the bathroom.

Knocking gently before opening the door, she placed her clothes down beside the sink and turned on the shower. The room slowly filled with steam as she stripped out of her night clothes and stepped into the scalding torrent of water. She jumped as the heat jerked her fully awake.

Once finished she toweled off and got into her clothes for the day. Looking into the mirror she started to straiten out her hair, pulling it down across her face. She heard a soft tap on the door and turn to see Neo peek her head in.

"I'm done in here, you can go ahead," Cinder said as she gathered her night clothes and left the bathroom.

After placing her dirty clothes in the hamper, Cinder made her way downstairs. Once there she saw her parents had left a note.

_Hey darlings, sorry we missed you. Help yourselves to whatever you want to throw together. Remember school starts at eight, don't be late._

_Ugh, this was so typical of them._ Cinder stomped her way into the kitchen only to realize they hadn't gone grocery shopping so they had no food in the house. _Damn it! This day already needs to be over._

Soft footfalls behind her alerted her to Neo's presence. By the look on her younger sister's face Cinder could tell they had both come to the same disappointing realization about their breakfast plan.

"I guess we could stop somewhere on the way to school," Cinder suggested. But Neo's eyes widened suddenly as she saw the oven clock behind Cinder.

Cinder turned and cursed silently as she saw the clock. 7:55 it leered at them, sharp red characters burning into their backs as they scrambled to gather their school things before hurriedly rushing out the door and running down the street.

Luckily for them the school was only a half mile down the road. They heard the first bell chime as they stepped into the main office out of breath, their steps slowing dramatically as they approached the desk.

* * *

A slender blonde sat at the desk, glasses low on her nose with her mouth held in a tight line as she read over the papers in front of her. A small wooden plaque indicated that her name was Ms. Goodwitch.

"Um, excuse us?" Cinder mumbled, her voice betraying just how nervous she felt. Ms. Goodwitch looked up at the two girls and pulled her glasses off her face. "Yes?" she asked looking expectantly at the sisters.

"We, we're new to the school, we just moved yesterday, we were told we should come and get our schedules here?" Cinder's voice again trembled as she tried to keep her breaths even.

"Would you two happen to be the Falls?" The older woman asked as she searched her desk for a pair of pink sheets. "Yeah," Cinder replied, glad to have accomplished what was needed.

"Here you are," The receptionist said, "each row has the classes name and room number. I'm sure you will be able to find it all ok."

The sisters tentatively took their respective schedules and made their way out of the office. After comparing schedules they saw they only had one class together. Neo looked up at her big sister and frowned.

"Don't worry about it Neo, we will be fine. Now let's hurry to class, we don't want to give the wrong impression." The two traveled in silence as they walked the halls, footfalls echoing loudly, until finally splitting up as Neo entered her first class. She turned back in time to see Cinder turning the corner. Cinder walked down another hall before arriving at room 404, Homeroom.

* * *

She slowly pushed the door open, looking around the classroom. There were students all over the place, some chatting, others frantically trying to finish any forgotten homework. Nobody paid any attention to her as she entered.

Cinder made her way to the corner, sitting by herself. She leaned over to grab her books out of her bag and upon raising her head her amber eyes met the blood red of a girl with light green hair and a rather revealing top. Cinder tore her eyes up from the girls chest in time to hear the girl sneer down at her.

"So you're the new girl, huh?" Cinder wasn't sure how to respond. She opened her mouth to say something but the dark skinned girl above her spoke again.

"A bit shy are we? I guess the more submissive the better. Makes it easier to make you my little bitch." Cinder's eyed widened as the girl leaned in closer. Her mind was racing a mile a minute. No one had ever treated her like that, electing to simply ignore her everywhere she went. She sat frozen in her seat too stunned to respond.

As the crimson eyed girl got closer, Cinder detectably cowered back lowering her face. The standing girl grabbed Cinder's chin and pulled it towards her. "You're mine now, I'm sure we'll have tons of fun," she said as a devious smile crept its way across her face.

Cinder closed her eyes again turning her head. But as she did she heard the sound of flesh on flesh and quickly turned to see the previously threatening girl on her ass with the outline of a hand printed in red across her face.

Cinder looked to the other side of her desk to see a short girl staring at her with great interest. The girls stormy gray eyes peered into Cinder's soft amber orbs. They seemed to hold so much behind them, excitement, danger, and, sadness? They held each other's gaze for a few moments before Cinder dropped her head, suddenly very interested in the graffiti carved into her desk.

As she admired the amazing wit of '8=D' she felt more than heard the girl sit down next to her. Cinder panicked. She had no idea what to say to the girl. She murmured a soft thank you, barely above a whisper.

"No problem," the girl responded, her voice strong, confident. "Emerald's a bitch to everybody, somebody needs to stand up to her."

Cinder turned to the girl, her face showing her confusion. "She's the cunt I laid out just now." If the girl's strong language affected Cinder she didn't show it, though she did turn around to see that the girl from before had disappeared.

"Sooo, what do I call you?" the girl asked. Cinder turned to face her but managed to only half glance up at her. "Cinder, Cinder Fall."

"That's a beautiful name!" the girl exclaimed. "It's just like your eyes…" the girl trailed off, realizing what she had said. "Um, I'm Ruby, Ruby Rose." She hurriedly continued, hoping Cinder wouldn't notice.

"It's, ah, nice to meet you," Cinder replied meekly, still unable to fully look Ruby in the face. "You too!" the girl replied, a smile lighting up her face. It was a kind smile, a warm smile. Cinder couldn't remember the last time anyone had smiled at her like that. She got so wrapped up thinking about that smile she didn't realize Ruby had continued talking.

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" Cinder requested shyly. "Yeah, I was just asking about you. Where are you from?" Cinder looked at her desk and thought for a moment.

"Well, I'm originally from Mistral but I've moved more than a dozen times in my life. I've lived in every kingdom and every major city there is."

"Wow, that sounds awesome, I wish I could do that."

"No, you wouldn't. It's the worst. I've never lived in the same place for more than a year, I've never been able to do very well in school as they keep changing, and it's impossible to have any friends since everyone already has friends and anyone you meet you just have to leave a couple months later! I hate it!" Cinder's rant ended and she realized she had said far more than she had intended. Ruby probably thought she was a freak. She put her head down on her desk and waited for Ruby to leave.

"I'll be your friend." Cinder was surprised when she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Ruby smiling that same brilliant smile at her. Cinder could feel her heart beat quicken. Was she really going to make a friend? On the first day of school?

Cinder returned Ruby's smile with a smile of her own. The two stayed like this for almost a minute, just smiling at each other, before the teacher came in and asked everyone to take their seats.

_Maybe this time things won't be so bad. Maybe this time I can be happy._

**A/N: So here's chapter two, hope you guys like it. Please leave any feedback you might have, advice, suggestions, complaints, etc.**

** I hope to be able to make chapters release between once and twice a week but for now they'll go up as soon as they're finished.**

**Enjoy.**


	3. Chapter 3

The rest of Cinder's morning passed much in the same way homeroom had. As it turned out Ruby was in just about all of her classes, english being the exception. They sat together through each class, taking seats towards the back of the room.

Between each class Ruby would greet her friends in the hallway and introduce them to Cinder.

"Hey Pyrrha!" Cinder looked up to see a tall, well built redhead turn to look at Ruby. "Hello Ruby, how's your day going?"

"Things are great! Have you met Cinder?" Ruby gestured to the girl standing beside her. Pyrrha looked to Cinder and did a double take. "No I haven't, it's a pleasure to meet you Cinder. My name's Pyrrha." She smiled at the shy girl and received a nod in return. "Um, I have to get to math, I'll see you at lunch." Pyrrha quickly walked off towards her next class.

"We should probably get going as well," Ruby started walking towards her next class with Cinder trailing not far behind her.

* * *

"Ugh, finally it's over. I swear Port can make anything sound boring as dicks." Ruby trudged her way out the door with Cinder in tow. Port's classes were always the longest of the day, feeling easily twice as long as any other. How the man managed to warp time was a mystery to all but was an undeniable truth.

The two made their way through the crowded halls to the high ceilinged cafeteria for lunch, the smell of pizza making it's way into their nostrils. The two were getting in line when Cinder felt a gentle tug on her sleeve. She turned around and saw Neo. Her eyes lit up seeing her sister.

"Hey girly. How was your morning?" Cinder whispered bending down to look Neo in the eyes. The younger girl simply shrugged her shoulders. Her face was neutral, not showing any emotion but her eyes were missing their usual color. Cinder knew her little sister, she saw through the façade. "What's wrong?" Concern filled Cinder's voice as she bent down next to Neo. Neo only gave a deep sigh and looked to the floor.

"Hey, come here." Cinder brought her sister into a hug. "It's alright, we can talk about it when we get home. Do you want to sit with me? I made a friend." Cinder couldn't help but let her excitement show in her tone at the mention of Ruby. Neo looked puzzled before looking behind Cinder to see the young girl staring back from behind her.

"Hello! I'm Ruby. What's your name!" Ruby asked excitedly. Neo shrunk back a little at the girl's overenthusiastic greeting.

"This is Neo, she's my little sister." Cinder answered softly for her sister, knowing she didn't like to speak around people.

"Hello Neo. I have a sister too, an older one, her name is Yang." Ruby replied more gently, smiling at Neo. Neo hid behind her sister, uncomfortable with the barrage of words from the new girl.

"**Hey! You're holding up the line!"**

The three looked around and noticed they had indeed been standing still for almost a minute. They quickly made their way up to the tall, stainless steel counter and purchased their lunches. Ruby guided them through the buzzing mass of students to a small wooden table in the corner by the window where four people were sitting.

At one corner sat the redhead Cinder remembered meeting before in the hall . Her hair was held high in a tight ponytail and her clothes had a golden sheen to them. Beside her sat a rather scrawny blond with a messy head of hair and equally untidy clothes. Across from him sat a couple deep in conversation. The guy had long black hair with a magenta stripe and his shirt seemed to be some kind of green silk, while the girl had short orange hair and a crazy smile plastered on her round face.

"Hey guys!"

"Hey Ruby, who you got there?" The ginger girl asked, her smile unwavering as she turned to the newcomers.

"This is Cinder and Neo, they just moved here," Ruby responded gesturing to each girl as she said their names. Cinder glanced around the table meeting each person's eyes. Neo stood behind her sister, shying away from the strangers.

"It's nice to meet you," The guy in green said. "My name's Ren, this is Nora, Jaune, and Pyrrha."

"Hello," Cinder replied softly. The sisters sat down next to Ruby and started eating their lunch. The group of friends spoke animatedly throughout lunch, bouncing from topic to topic. Cinder tried to follow the conversation but she didn't recognize the people they were talking about. Eventually she resigned herself to focusing on the food on her plate.

"Hey Ruby, where's Yang?" Nora asked. "Oh, she had a doctor's appointment today." Ruby replied simply.

Lunch soon ended and Cinder and her sister stood up to dispose of their trash. As they walked Cinder looked down to her sister and could see the apprehension painted on her face. "It'll be ok Neo, the day's almost over." Cinder tried to console her sister. They shared a quiet goodbye before Cinder followed Ruby to their next class.

* * *

Ruby looked to the clock. Five minutes left till the day was over. She kept fidgeting in her seat, sending glances to the obsidian haired girl sat beside her. She wanted to ask her to hang out after school, but she knew the girl was very shy. She briefly pondered why she had taken such an interest in the girl before realizing she had been caught staring.

"Hey…" Cinder said uncertainly. "Hey, Cinder. I don't suppose you would, uh, like to hang out after school. We could go to my house." Ruby asked hesitantly.

Cinder was surprised by the question. She hadn't expected anything like that at all. _Does she really want to be my friend? Like a real friend? _A rare smile spread across Cinder's face as she daydreamed about having a real friend.

"Um, so is that a yes?" Ruby asked, seeing the smile on Cinder's face and displaying her own, heart melting smile. _Yes, I should go! This will be great! Fuck, what about Neo? shit. _Cinder sighed deeply and looked down to her desk.

"Sorry, but I have to walk my sister home today, maybe another time." Cinder replied, her head downcast in melancholy.

"Oh, well ok, I guess." Ruby said, a little crestfallen. "Hey, maybe I could come over to your house?" Ruby asked hopefully.

Cinder thought about it for a second. That could work, but she would have to ask her parents first. "I'd have to ask my parents first" Cinder replied trying and failing to hide her excitement. "But maybe tomorrow" she ended with the biggest smile of the day.

"Great" Ruby said, beaming at the girl next to her.

At that moment the bell rang, signaling the end of Cinder's first day at this new school. It had been a great day, the best in a long time for her. She made her way to the front of the school to wait for her sister.

While she waited she reflected back on the day's events.

_Could this day have gone any better? Probably not. I have a friend now. A real friend, I think._

**A/N: So here it is, chapter three. I'd like to give a quick thanks to ARMV7 and Arieko for leaving much appreciated reviews. I'd absolutely recommend checking out ARMV7's Maybe I'll see you around and Arieko's The queen's vessel, both are fantastic stories. As always I'd love to hear what you think, any review is helpful. Hope you enjoy.**


	4. Chapter 4

After gathering all of her books and stuffing them haphazardly into her bag, Ruby started a mad dash home. She lived just over a mile from the school but with her speed she was able to make it home in under five minutes. The Houses blurred past and Ruby's eyes slowly lost focus on the road in front of her as her thoughts began to drift back to her new friend.

_Cinder is so cool, so mysterious. I can't wait to get to know her better. What should we do if we hang out?_

_I bet we could have __**lots**__ of fun together._

_No, bad brain. She's just a friend, besides who says she even swings that way. _

_I like how her hair swings. It's so dark and shiny, like a beautiful curtain of mystery._

_I wouldn't mind pulling open that curtain._

_OMG stop it._

Ruby shook her head to try and rid herself of the dirty thoughts. As they subsided she looked around and realized she had managed to run right past her house. Shaking her head at her own foolishness she turned herself around and began slowly walking, towards the lot, up the driveway, across the porch, through the front door. The heavy door swung open with a low creak.

Her house was a modest single floor ordeal. The front door opened to a short hallway with five doors lining its length, three bedrooms, a kitchen, and a bathroom. She set her shoes and bag down by the front door and made her way to the end of the hall. The door opened at her beckoning and revealed a small kitchen dining room mix.

"Hey sweetheart, how was your day?" Ruby turned to see her Uncle Qrow sitting at the table with lots of paperwork spread out in front of him. Qrow was a tall, lean man. His face was long and pointed and his eyes were sharp and angled. "Fantastic!" Ruby replied, her face lighting with her shining smile. "Anything special happen I should know about?" Qrow asked, his face softening, Ruby's excitement being too contagious to withstand.

"Yeah, I met this girl, her name's Cinder, she just moved here, we have like the same schedule, we spent the whole day together talking, well I was the one doing most of the talking, she's pretty shy, I hope I can get her to open up, whenever she laughs she has this cute shy smile she does…" Ruby trailed off realizing her brain to mouth filter had seemed to malfunction. "Um, I mean she's cute when she, I mean she smiles and it's really cute, um, I have to go…emergency homework."

Ruby quickly turned to leave, her face rapidly changing color to match her namesake. "Hold on there," Qrow said. Ruby stopped and slowly turned back around to look at her uncle. "So this Cinder, tell me a little more about her." Qrow asked, his tone one of amusement.

Ruby suddenly became incredibly fascinated with her feet and how they glided across the smooth, white linoleum of the kitchen floor. "Well," Ruby began uncertainly, "she just moved here with her family. She has a little sister with pink and brown hair and they get along real well. Um, She didn't really say much else about herself." Silence hung in the room for a moment before a sing song voice could be heard from out in the hall.

"Ruby's got a crush~ Ruby's got a crush~" Ruby's face paled as her older sister Yang entered the kitchen. Yang was tall and very well built. She was very clearly an athlete with toned arms and legs as well as a strong, confident face. Her hair was long, thick, and golden and her eyes where stunning lilac orbs. Her ego was even bigger than the chest that contained it, which is saying quite a lot really. "So, who's this Cinder?" Yang teased. "I'm out for one day and you already have a girlfriend." Ruby's face again turned a vibrant red hue that could rival a tomato.

_Crap, this isn't how this was supposed to happen. Why can't Yang ever just let me be._

"She's not my girlfriend! It's not like that! But she did invite me to come hangout at her house sometime," Ruby directed the latter half of the statement towards her uncle, her voice trailing off towards the end. Qrow thought about it for a moment before responding. "I don't know Ruby, I'm sure she's a nice girl but I don't know how I feel about you going to her house all by your self."

"I could go with her," Yang quickly offered. Ruby excitedly turned to Yang only to suddenly cower back after seeing the devious smile on the blonde's face. "I don't know." Ruby trailed off before being shushed by her sister. "Don't worry about. I don't mind one bit." Yang ended her sentence with a menacing wink before leaving the kitchen. Ruby's stomach twisted itself into a knot. _Uh oh._

Ruby looked to Qrow who simply shrugged. "If you take Yang with you I guess it wouldn't be a problem, just make sure you call so I know when to expect you back. Ruby nodded excitedly and stepped over to the cupboards.

_At least I can go over to her house. Let's see what we can find for dinner…_

* * *

The walk home was a rather quiet journey. The sisters walked in silence, occasionally sharing a brief glance before again staring back at the road. The dull drone of cars passing lulled Cinder into thought. Cinder's mind was quickly filled with thoughts of Ruby, her new friend.

_I can't believe I actually have a friend! She's so nice, so bubbly and full of energy. She's so interesting too, so smart, and funny. I can't wait to see her again… or her cute smile._

_Wait what? Cute smile? Where'd that come from? _

The idea floated around in Cinder's head. The more she thought about it the more she realized the implications of that one stray thought.

_Do I, do I like her? Like, like like her? Oh no, why'd this of all things have to happen? Finally I make a friend and all I can think about is her beautiful smile?_

_Wait, beautiful? What is happening to me? Ahhhh!_

Cinder's inner turmoil continued to boil away inside of her as she opened the front door and led Neo inside. The house looked just as they had left it. Mostly barren, void of any personal affects, just furniture. The sisters laid their stuff out in the living room and headed into the kitchen to prepare dinner. Unsurprisingly neither of their parents were home. They never were it seemed. But the sisters didn't mind, they had grown used to just having each other for company.

As they worked at slicing vegetables Cinder remembered that it wasn't just her first day of school. "Hey girly, how was your day?" Neo put down her knife and stared at the table. "That bad huh?" Cinder put her own knife down and raised a comforting hand to place on Neo's shoulder. "You wanna talk about it?" Neo just sighed and shook her head slowly. "Hey, you know I'm always here for you, right? You ever need anything you know you can come to me, ok?" Neo's eyes met Cinder's, they had gotten most of their brilliant pink color back by this point. The sisters smiled at each other briefly before returning to the task at hand. Cinder was worried about her sister, but she knew that if Neo needed her help she would ask.

In no time at all they had finished preparing dinner and had sat down to eat. They knew not to wait up for their parents. They would be back late if they made it back at all. The two girls ate in silence, the only sound the clink of silverware on plates and the quiet drone of the television in the background.

"Hey Neo,"Cinder began. Neo looked up at her sister, a questioning look on her face. "Would you be ok if I invited that girl I met today over to the house?" Neo was visibly taken aback by the question, she wasn't so sure about letting a stranger into the house, but after some short deliberation she nodded her head. Cinder smiled at Neo and Neo returned it, albeit more reservedly.

The two set about their evening routines, getting the dishes cleaned, school supplies sorted, and pajamas on. Cinder whispered a quiet good bye to her sister before closing the door to her room and climbing into bed.

As she lay in bed searching for sleep her mind began to wander. After some brief searching it decided to focus on her young new friend. Cinder kept thinking about Ruby. She couldn't get the image of her perfect smile out of her head.

_Perfect? Damn it. Stop thinking like that. There's no way she feels the same, I need to just be happy she wants to be friends at all. I can't afford to mess this up._

And it was with that thought that Cinder found a rather restless sleep.

**A/N: So here's four. Not quite as long as I'd have liked but this chapter is mostly just setting up for what's to come...**

**As always I'm eager to hear what you think, feel free to say whatever you want.**

**Hope you enjoy.**


	5. Chapter 5

"Come on sleepy head it's time to wakey wakey~"

"Ughh, no, leave me alone."

"Come on sleeping beauty, you still need to get ready for school~"

"Five more minutes?"

"No, you have to introduce me to your new girlfriend!"

At that point in the conversation the bothersome blonde received a pillow to the face.

"Breakfast is on the table, I'll be waiting in the kitchen." At that Yang turned and left the room, pulling the door closed behind her.

_Ugghh, why do mornings have to suck so much? I hate having to get up. I hate having to go to school, and do work, and see Cinder…_

_Wait! I get to see Cinder again! Ok body let's do this._

Ruby threw the covers off and swung her legs over the side of her bed. Then she promptly found herself in a rather compromising position with the floor. She stood up again, this time managing to stay on her feet. She quickly threw off her sleepwear before slipping into a black shirt, red sweatshirt, and dark red skinny jeans.

Ruby opened the door to her room and was met with the absolutely mind erasing scent of waffles from her left. She quickly turned, made her way to the end of the hall, and stepped into the kitchen. Her sister sat at the table eating a rather large pile of the delicious smelling breakfast food. She turned to see her uncle manning the waffle iron. She gave a quick good morning to the two before getting herself a plate and piling it up high with food.

The two sisters ate loudly, their enjoyment of the meal very apparent from the contented noises they made as they shoveled food into their faces. Ruby was eternally grateful for Yang's silence, well more like lack of words. Soon the two girls were heading out the door to school. The pair walked side by side on the sidewalk occasionally making small talk.

"So, what did I miss?" Yang asked casually. Ruby thought for a moment. "Nothing really. We have a history project coming up but we don't even have partners picked out yet." She replied. "Oh great," the blonde responded rolling her eyes wildly. The conversation continued on, detailing the boring minutia of school life for the blonde who had missed it the day prior.

Soon they could see the school in the distance. Ruby thanked the stars that Yang hadn't said anything about Cinder, but just then her sister's voice violently destroyed that hope.

"So about this girlfriend of your's…"

"Damn it, Yang. I told you she's not my girlfriend!"

"But you like her~"

"Gah! Leave me alone!"

Ruby ran ahead of her irritating sister, quickly making it to the front of the school and stepping inside. She looked around for a moment, searching for the girl with bright, black hair pulled into a sweeping veil across her face. But after many minutes Ruby had still yet to see the her. _I hope she's alright._

* * *

Soon the bell rang signaling the start of homeroom. Ruby turned and started her trek to room 420. The halls were alive with the rushed footsteps of students as Ruby waded through the crowd of people, her mind just as busy as the halls. _Where could she be?_

Upon arriving in her class she looked around and instantly noticed a distinct lack of a certain black haired beauty. She felt a pang of sadness in her chest as she took her seat towards the back of the room. _I wonder were she is? She couldn't have moved again already? Could she? _

Homeroom seemed to drag on and on for the young girl. She could not sit still in her seat. She kept whipping her head around to look at the door, each time hoping to see Cinder enter, and each time being very disappointed at not seeing her. Twenty minutes, or one hundred million years as Ruby thought, later the bell rang. Ruby was worried about her new friend._ Why isn't she here?_

Ruby's next class went much the same way, not a single glimpse of Cinder. Ruby was on edge, fretting over every little thing.

_Could I have scared her away? Could she be avoiding me? She's staying home just so she doesn't have to see me? Oh my god, what did I do? Was it something I said? Was I being too forward asking to come over? Oh this is all my fault. Stupid. Stupid! STUPID! Damn it! Forget about her like liking you, she hates you, she's avoiding you! She never wants to see you again!_

Ruby wallowed in her guilt for all of second period. She couldn't bring herself to pay attention to the teacher and her mind could think of nothing but Cinder. Once the bell rang she took her sweet time getting her things together before dejectedly trudging down the hall to her next class. She slumped into her seat with her head down in her hands on her desk.

"Hey, are you ok?" A soft sweet voice reached Ruby's ears. It sounded like the voice of angel. Better yet it sounded like Cinder's voice.

_Great, now I'm hallucinating about her. How do I care so much about her already? How could I not? She's so cute but put together. So strong._

"Ruby? Is everything alright?" the voice asked again delicately. "Yeah, I'm fine imaginary voice, I'm just imagining that I can hear this awesome girl I seemed to have made hate me. No big deal. It's just some guilt triggered reaction to…" Ruby's voice trailed off as she heard someone shift in the seat next to her.

She looked up to see a concerned looking Cinder leaning closer, a hand outstretched to place on Ruby's shoulder. Ruby jumped in her seat. "What? How? I? You?" Ruby couldn't get the words out of her mouth.

_Crap, I didn't say too much did I?_

"What about me?" Cinder asked, her voice laced with concern. "Oh, um, I didn't see you earlier, so I got worried. I kinda thought maybe I had done something wrong. That you hated me…" Ruby ended uncertainly, averting her gaze.

"Hate you? How could I ever hate you, you're…" Cinder stopped herself, she didn't want to say too much and scare off her new friend. "…great" she ended lamely.

_Great? Really? That's the best I could come up with? Fucking hell brain, you've got to give me something better than that!_

At hearing Cinder's reassurance, Ruby's head shot back up and her stormy gray eyes met Cinder's glowing embers. A smile spread across her face, one that sent Cinder's heart aflutter. The two held each other's gaze for a long moment before Ruby spoke up.

"So what happened to you then? I was worried sick."

"Oh, well, it's actually kinda a funny story…"

* * *

Six A.M. The alarm sounded in Cinder's room harkening the start to a yet another new day. Cinder always woke up early, preferring to shower in the morning and still have time to get everything in order for the day. But today wasn't like any other day. Today a certain charcoal haired girl was wrapped up in a dream. A very realistic dream. A rather personal dream. One that involved a certain young beauty she had met the day prior.

_Ruby? What are we doing in my room? Where did all these candles come from? Are those rose petals? Ru-? Oh, mmm, her lips are sweet, like strawberries. Wait, her lips? We're? I'm? Um? Uh? Ok… this is, nice? Mmm, very nice…_

Cinder jerked awake with a start. Her mind was racing, her face felt flushed.

_What the hell was that? _

_It was just a dream. _

_What the hell kind of dream was that?_

_A kick ass dream!_

_No!_

_Well, maybe… _

_No, I can't let myself think like that. What if I scare her away? I'll lose the only friend I've ever managed to have. I can't afford to mess this up._

Her head was still pounding, images of her and Ruby flooding her brain. She glanced to the clock on her night stand. Nine twenty it said.

_Ok, I've still got… oh shit what happened? Did I sleep through the alarm? Damn it._

Cinder quickly scrambled to gather everything she needed for the day, Ruby briefly leaving her train of thought to be replaced with unbridled panic. She peeked into Neo's room to see that her sister had already left for school. She flew out the door, only remembering to lock it once she had already made it all the way out to the street. She soared down the sidewalk, reaching speeds previously thought impossible to humans and arrived at school just in time to hear the bell signaling the end of second period.

_Better late than never, I guess._

* * *

Cinder told Ruby the events of her hectic morning in an even tone, making damn sure to leave out the part about her dream. Ruby simply smiled back, laughing good naturally with Cinder as she told her story.

"Well at least you're here now, right?" Ruby said. _More like at least your with me now. _She added in her head.

The class soon started and Cinder turned to focus on the teacher at the front of the rather small classroom. Unfortunately for Ruby, she couldn't pry her eyes away from the amber eyed girl sitting beside her. It was only after the teacher called her name for the third time that she was finally able to tear her eyes away from Cinder. She blushed deeply after realizing she had been caught staring. At this Cinder let out the most beautiful sound Ruby had ever heard in her young life. She giggled. Just a short little laugh but those two seconds kept replaying over and over in Ruby's mind. A smile stretched its way across Ruby's face that stayed there for the rest of class.

* * *

Soon lunch time rolled around and Cinder and Ruby made their way down to the cafeteria where a long line of students were queueing for food. They joined the line and Cinder soon felt the presence of an additional person beside her. Turning to her left she saw Neo, with her head down, and a frown on her face.

"Hey, how are you doing? Is something bothering you?" Neo briefly looked up at her sister to listen to the questions before returning her gaze to the floor. "Hey, I can't help you if you don't tell me what's wrong." Concern dominated Cinder's voice as she raised a hand to place on Neo's shoulder. Neo just sighed and shrugged.

The line moved along and soon the girls had gotten their lunches and made their way to the table in the corner. The same group of four were sat in their same seats as yesterday. Cinder kept her attention trained on her sister. Neo tried to put on a smile but it came out as a sort of half grimace.

The group again made animated conversation and this time Cinder tried to follow. She recognized some of the names of the teachers and even a couple of students but it still didn't really make much sense to her. She kept glancing back at her sister who seemed endlessly fascinated by the plate in front of her. Cinder decided she was going to have to have a serious talk with her sister that evening.

"Hey Ruby, where's Yang?" Nora asked. For the second day in a row the blonde had not been at lunch. This time Ruby didn't have any sort of explanation. "Maybe she had to go see a teacher or something? She didn't say anything to me."

Soon the bell rang throughout the loud cafeteria, signaling that lunch was wrapping up. Cinder turned to try and speak with her sister before classes started again but she only managed to get a glimpse of Neo before she melted into the crowd.

_Oh well, I'll see her tonight anyway. _

* * *

Neo walked down the halls with her head hung in defeat. This new school was just like the one before and the one before that. She didn't know anybody and she didn't know how in the world she could do anything to change that. She wanted friends but she didn't know how to make them, or if she was even able to.

She traversed the mass of people, her mind wallowing in self pity, not paying attention to where she was walking. Consequently she suddenly found herself on her butt, on the ground. She looked up to see she had managed to walk full on into an older girl.

Neo braced herself, preparing for the string of curses and insults that was sure to come from this stranger. But they never came; instead Neo heard a beautiful voice call down to her. "Hey, are you alright? Sorry about that, I can be a little scatter-brained sometimes." Neo looked back at the face of this girl and found herself lost in shimmering pools of a vivacious violet.

A hand extended out to Neo from a halo of brilliant golden locks. Neo tentatively grasped it and allowed herself to be pulled to her feet. Neo maintained eye contact with her shoes, her heart racing at the interaction she was having with a stranger. "Hey, are you alright?" the blonde girl asked, a hint of concern finding its way into her voice. Neo looked up at the girl and couldn't help but smile shyly and nod her head slowly.

The older girl opened her mouth to speak again but found that the much shorter girl had fled during the lull in conversation.

_Aww, was it something I said? It's a shame she ran off, she was so adorable. I hope she's ok._

* * *

The rest of the day passed quickly for Cinder. She had decided she wanted to invite Ruby over to her house that day, but was unsure on how to go about asking her. So as the final bell rang, Cinder was pleasantly surprised when Ruby brought up the topic of hanging out after school.

"Hey so, uh, I don't suppose you're free to do something after school today?" Ruby asked cautiously, hoping Cinder would want to. "Yeah, I'm available. My parents gave me the all clear to have you over if you're up for it," Cinder lied. _I can't let my forgetfulness keep me from spending time with Ruby. _"Oh, yeah, sure. That sounds like fun." Ruby replied eagerly. "But is it ok if my sister comes along too. Not that I want her there, but my uncle said she needs to come with me if I go."

Cinder thought about it for less than a second before agreeing to the stipulation.

"Alright, let's head out then, we still need to go and find our sisters."

The pair walked side by side down the hall. Each separately thinking the same thoughts about the day. _Oh this is going to be great! I can't wait to spend time with her. _Lost in thought, the two girls arrived at the front of the school and stood together of to the side, out of the way of the torrent of students leaving.

They were so wrapped in their thoughts that a certain rambunctious blonde was able to sneak up behind the pair and startle them.

"AHHH," Ruby nearly jumped out of her skin and Cinder was not far behind her.

"Damn it Yang! I told you not to do that! You know I hate surprises." Ruby complained.

"Sorry Rubes, I just couldn't pass up an opportunity like that." A wry smile spread across the older girl's face. "And besides, now you can introduce me to your new girlfriend~"

At that Ruby began to blush furiously, her face reaching a shade of red previously unknown to mankind. But Ruby's face didn't even begin to compare to Cinder's.

When she heard the word girlfriend, Cinder's eyes shot open wide before slamming shut. Her face flooded with blood, creating a near purple color. _Could she tell? Am I that obvious?_

Both girls were rendered absolutely dumbstruck. After a moment Yang decided they had had enough.

"Hey I'm just messing with you guys, lighten up," Yang smiled at the pair, laughing heartily.

They both slowly recovered their composure, unaware of how the other had reacted. The three stood their for a moment, unsure of what to say. "So, uh, Cinder, this is my sister Yang." Ruby offered. "Hello Cinder!" Yang replied cheerfully. Cinder looked to Yang and gave a soft spoken hello. The two sisters turned and started talking quickly.

Cinder heard Ruby explain to Yang how they were coming over to her house and as Cinder looked at the sisters talking she noticed her own sister peering around the corner at her. Cinder waved to her sister and Neo hesitantly made her way over.

As Neo got closer she realized that she had seen that gorgeous mane of blonde hair before. That was the girl she had bumped into earlier! She hoped that the blonde wouldn't be mad at her. She didn't want to get yelled at. She mentally prepared herself for the verbal onslaught she feared would undoubtably come.

Yang suddenly trailed off in the middle of her sentence as the short girl came into view. "Hey, small world isn't it?" Yang asked, her voice becoming gentler, recognizing Neo from earlier in the day. Neo raised her head slowly, making sure Yang wasn't going to start shouting.

Yang took notice of the shorter girls skittish behavior and a concerned look made its way onto her face. Cinder and Ruby watched the exchange in slight confusion.

"You two know each other?" Ruby asked, her befuddlement evident from her tone.

"Yeah, I ran into her earlier today, litterally. But she ran off before I had a chance to properly apologize." Yang explained looking over at Neo. She was even more adorable now then when Yang had bumped into her earlier.

_Her eyes are so bright and pink! And her hair is cool, split down the middle. She doesn't even reach my chest she's so short, she's so cute~_

Neo kept her gaze on the floor, twirling her foot in place, trying to make herself disappear.

Ruby and Yang turned from Neo to Cinder, their gazes mixes of confusion and worry.

"Don't worry about her," Cinder reassured, "She's really shy around people. She doesn't speak very often, even to me."

_Aww _Yang thought. _Poor thing. She looks like she could really use with a nice big hug._

The girls collectively made sure that they had everything they'd need from school before starting their short walk to Cinder and Neo's house.

_I really hope this goes well. _Ruby thought.

_I hope I don't mess this up._

**A/N: Yay, we finally have everybody together! I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter of A New Beginning. As always I highly encourage you to leave any and all feedback you might have. Feel free to follow so you know when I post new chapters.**

**Until next time.**


	6. Chapter 6

Ruby spoke animatedly with Cinder, gushing with excitement about her plans for the afternoon. The pair walked side by side on the sidewalk leaving Yang and Neo to follow behind them. As the group walked Yang noticed that the short girl beside her had been slowly allowing herself to be closer to the group. Yang smiled to herself. _She really is just too cute for her own good._

"Here it is," Cinder announced. "Our house." Ruby and Yang admired the modest two story residence.

"It's nice!" Ruby responded. The girls made their way inside and Cinder sighed in relief to see her parents hadn't yet come home. The girls set their bags and shoes down by the door.

"Would anyone like something to drink?" Cinder offered. Ruby and Yang thought for a moment before asking for water. "The usual?" Cinder asked, her question directed to her little sister. Neo nodded slightly and turned her ahead away from the group. Cinder went to the kitchen to retrieve the beverages for everybody. Ruby laid herself down on the couch, reaching for the remote before seeing an xbox tucked away under the t.v.

"You guys have an xbox! Oh my god, do you have GTA five?" Ruby asked excitedly. Cinder entered the room laden with drinks and responded to Ruby. "Yeah, we haven't really had a chance to set it up yet though."

"Can I?" Ruby smiled at Cinder, her stormy gray eyes pleading. Cinder could feel her heart skip several beats before she replied. "Sure, feel free."

Ruby went about plugging in all of the cords and wires into the game console and the t.v. making sure she didn't mix up the inputs and outputs.

While this exchange was happening Yang had sat down next to Neo and had tried to start a conversation.

"Hey there, Neo. Sorry again about running into you earlier, I can get distracted fairly easily. I hope I didn't hit you too hard." Yang started.

Neo turned to look at the older girl and gave her a brief, shy smile before averting her gaze again.

_She's even more cute when she smiles. _Yang thought._ I have to try and keep the conversation going though._

"So, uh, how are you liking school so far?" Yang asked.

Neo's eyes seemed to dull at the mention of school but Yang didn't seem to notice.

"Must be cool getting to move around all the time." Yang tried again to stimulate conversation.

Tears started to well up in Neo's eyes and now Yang seemed to register that something was wrong with the short girl.

"Hey, are you alright? I didn't meant to…" Yang's voice trailed off as Neo quickly stood up and ran up the stairs behind them.

"Hey wait! Come back!" Yang called after her.

Cinder and Ruby turned in time to watch Neo's feet disappear upstairs. They both turned questioningly to Yang.

"I don't know what happened. One second I'm asking her about school then the next thing I know she's booking it up the stairs." Yang explained, her concern dominating her tone of voice.

"Oh no," Cinder said.

"I didn't mean to hurt her feelings or anything." Yang said as her head drooped. "I was just trying to get to know her better."

Cinder sighed deeply. "I'm going to go check on her, you guys can play if you want." Cinder said before climbing off the couch and over to the stairs.

* * *

Cinder's footfalls made no sound as she slowly crept along the upstairs hall to her sister's room. She knocked softly on the door and opened it gently.

"Hey Neo. You ok?" Cinder called to her sister.

Neo had taken a seat in the corner by a floor to ceiling window. She was cradling a small pink teddy bear in her arms and seem to be lost in her thoughts as she stared through the window and its view of the ocean.

Cinder opened the door all the way so that she could step through. Once into Neo's room she shut the door and made her way past a twin size bed over to her sister, taking a seat beside her.

"Hey girly." Cinder began, her voice taking on the tone of the mother the two girls never seemed to see anymore. "I know this is hard for you. I know moving sucks. I hate it just as much as you do. But I can't help you if you won't talk to me about it."

Cinder placed a comforting hand on her little sister's shoulder and gave it what she hoped was a reassuring squeeze. Neo looked over to her sister, her eyes brightening as she relaxed.

The sisters sat like that for a minute before Cinder again tried to figure out what was the matter.

"So are you ready to tell me what's the matter?" Cinder asked.

Neo contemplated the question before shrugging very noncommittally.

"Do we need to play the twenty questions game?" Cinder asked, her smile audible in her voice.

Neo smiled a little remembering the twenty questions game. A game Cinder had come up with in order to get information out of Neo when she refused to speak. Cinder would ask Neo a question and she'd either nod or shake her head. Both girls found it fun though they would never admit it.

"Alrighty then, question one. Is something wrong" Cinder began.

Neo replied with a nod.

"Ok, does it have something to do with school?"

Neo thought for a moment before nodding again.

"Ok, so it's a school thing. Is it your classes?"

Neo shook her head.

"Hmm, not classes? Is it the other students?"

Neo hesitantly nodded her head, not wholly sure of herself.

"Are you getting bullied? Do I need to do something?"

Neo shook her head at first but then stopped before tilting her head to the side.

"Something about me?" Cinder asked a little confused.

Neo hesitantly nodded her head once more, burying her face into her teddy bear.

"Hey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…" Cinder began to apologize before she realized she wasn't sure what she had done.

"Um, Neo, did I say something I shouldn't have?" Cinder asked, her voice once again taking on a more serious, concerned tone.

Neo shook her head, giving a long sigh.

"Was it something I did?" Cinder asked starting to wonder what she had done to hurt her sister.

Neo thought for a moment then kind of nodded her head while simultaneously shaking her head.

"Yes and no?" Cinder asked confusion starting to take over once more.

Neo nodded solemnly.

Cinder thought for a moment before she realized what was wrong. How had she not seen before now?

"Does this have to do with Ruby?" Cinder asked, feeling as though she knew what the answer would be.

Neo gave the smallest nod she could manage.

"Are you afraid that I'm going to spend less time with you now?" Cinder asked, hitting the nail right on the head.

Neo didn't even bother nodding. Her eyes were no longer able to hold back her tears and so she began to cry silently into her chest.

"Hey, come here," Cinder said as she pulled Neo into a hug. "You know I'm never going to leave you, right? I'm always going to be your big sister."

Neo just pressed herself harder into her older sister, searching for reassurance that Cinder wasn't going anywhere.

Cinder and Neo sat like that for a while, Neo crying away her fears and Cinder holding her close, slowly brushing through her short hair.

"You know I love you, right Neo?" Cinder asked, her head resting atop her sisters. She felt rather than saw the shorter girl nod her head.

"And I'm never going to leave you. But you need to try and make some friends of your own. I know it's hard but I feel like this time things are going to turn out alright for us."

Cinder could feel Neo shake her head.

"You know Yang wouldn't mind being your friend." Cinder whispered to her sister. "She was trying to be friendly but you ran away before she really had a chance, you should give her a chance."

Neo though for a moment. So many thoughts crossed her mind. She remembered all the friends she had had, all the friends she had subsequently lost, and all of her failed attempts at making more since. But her sisters words stuck in her head. This time things are going to turn out alright for us. Neo hopped Cinder was right.

Neo slowing extricated herself from her sister before standing up and wiping her eyes. She wanted to at least try to make friends with Yang.

* * *

The two sisters wordlessly traveled across the upstairs hall and down the stairs to the first floor. As they got closer they could hear the excited cheers of their two guests playing in the living room.

As Cinder and Neo stepped into the room, Yang and Ruby paused the game to turn towards their hosts.

"I just want to say I'm sorry for whatever I said to upset you, Neo. I just wanted to try and get to know you." Yang quickly apologized to the considerably shorter girl standing before her.

"It's alright, everything's sorted out now. It wasn't your fault." Cinder explained.

Cinder felt a tug on her sleeve and she turned to look down at her little sister. Neo looked from Cinder to Ruby to Yang, then pointed to herself. A moment later recognition registered on Cinder's face as she explained to the two confused girls standing in the living room.

"Hey Yang, would you like to go speak with Neo upstairs while Ruby and I play here so we don't bother you guys?" Cinder asked politely.

"Sure," Yang replied brightly. "Lead the way."

Neo turned and climbed back up the stairs with the rambunctious blonde in tow. Cinder turned to Ruby and asked, "You wanna keep playing?"

"Sure." Ruby replied reaching for the controller that was previously Yang's and handing it to Cinder.

The two sat down on the couch next to each other, their eyes jumping to the screen as the game resumed. Cinder quickly lost herself in the immersive world of Los Santos but Ruby couldn't seem to give the game her full focus. Every time Cinder shifted in her seat Ruby could feel their thighs rub against each other. They were no more than accidental, momentary touches, but each and every one sent a tingle down Ruby's back. Soon Ruby could think of nothing else but the beautiful girl sitting beside her.

_Ugh, what is this feeling? Why is it so warm in here? I swear its gone up twenty degrees in ten minutes. Maybe I should take my sweatshirt off._

_Maybe you should take off more._

_Damn it brain! Really? You think now is a good time?_

_It is just the two of you._

_Yang and Neo are upstairs!_

_Look at her. Isn't she pretty?_

_I guess…_

_She's the most beautiful girl you've ever seen._

_Yeah…_

_So make a move! Look at her. She's sitting right next to you._

_But what if she doesn't feel the same way?_

_Only one way to find out…_

Throughout this whole conversation with her inner desires, Ruby had been looking at Cinder without really seeing her. After a minute Cinder had noticed Ruby's lack of attention to the game and had turned to look at her. When Cinder turned her head she was surprised to be looking into deep pools of silver. Ruby's eyes seemed to be glazed over, as though she were dreaming.

Cinder blushed, turning away from the red-head's gaze. Ruby realized she had been caught staring and quickly turned to look back at the t.v. blushing profusely.

The two girls sat there awkwardly for a moment before returning to their game.

_Was she staring at me? Do I have something on my face? Or was she just, looking at me? It couldn't be like that, right? Ugh, this is so confusing! Girls are so complicated!_

The pair continued to play their game as a miracle took place upstairs.

* * *

Neo led Yang up the stair and into her room at the end of the hall. She swung open the door to reveal her bedroom to the blonde.

Within there was a simple bed with a rich wooden frame and pink sheets. The walls were light red and the carpet was a bright white. Neo plopped herself down on the floor and motioned for the blonde to do the same.

Yang dropped down onto her butt and folded her legs in front of herself. She looked over at Neo to see that the short girl had a small pink teddy bear in her arms and was cradling it to her chest.

Yang wasn't sure how to start the conversation. She mulled it over in her head and decided it would be best to tell Neo a little about herself. But as she opened her mouth to speak, all of the air was sucked from her lungs. She couldn't speak, she couldn't breath, she couldn't move, she couldn't even think. She was sure she had just died and gone to heaven.

She had heard a voice, a voice of an angel. It had been so soft, so smooth, so sweet. It had left her feeling so warm inside, so contented, so happy. Her head spun around trying to find the source of that beautiful sound. She looked all around the room before her gaze fell upon Neo.

Neo smiled widely at Yang and repeated shyly. "Hello."

Yang's heart suddenly started to pound in her chest, her breath coming back in uneven gasps. Yang had not expected such a wonderful sound to come from the small girl before her. But there was no doubt that it had been Neo's voice.

_She has the voice of an angel. I've never heard something so beautiful in my life. She's incredible! I could die happy._

Yang continued to gush on and on in her thoughts about the girl in front of her.

Neo turned her head to the side to watch Yang's face light up with a dazzling smile. They held each other's gaze for a moment before Yang finally found enough self control to speak.

"So, what do you want to talk about?" the blonde asked the bright eyed girl.

Neo simply shrugged in response, a small smile still tugging at the corner of her lips.

_God she is cute! I've got to get her to speak again. Anything to hear her beautiful voice._

"I could tell you a little about myself if you'd like?" Yang asked.

"Ok," Neo replied, her grin breaking out into a large smile across her whole face.

Yang's heart again skipped a beat at hearing Neo's voice caress her ears.

"Well, my name's Yang as you already know. I'm seventeen years old, almost eighteen. I live with my sister, Ruby, and my uncle Qrow. I guess you could say I'm a thrill seeker. I love going fast and fighting hard."

Neo continued to smile as Yang continued to talk about her life. Neo briefly wondered why Yang lived with her uncle rather than her parents but realized it wasn't her place to ask.

As Neo watched Yang talk she started to notice little things about the blonde sitting before her.

Yang had a disarming smile. Her teeth were dazzlingly bright and she had little dimples on her cheeks when she smiled. Her nose was strong like the rest of her face, but looking closer Neo could see scars from the multiple times it had been broken. Yang's hair was so bright that it seemed to create a halo around her head, giving her an even more angelic appearance.

But the thing that captivated Neo the most was Yang's eyes.

They were large pools of a deep purple. Looking into them Neo found herself lost thinking about everything that was hidden behind those gorgeous lilac orbs.

After several moments of silence Neo realized that Yang had stopped speaking and was now looking at her expectantly. Neo leaned her head to the side, her face looking puzzled.

"What about you?" Yang repeated for the dazzled pink eyed girl.

Neo thought for a moment about what she wanted to say. She wasn't keen on bringing up her past and the painful feelings it entailed.

Yang sent the shorter girl a warm, reassuring smile. Neo took a deep breath and spoke slowly.

"Well, I'm Neo. I…" Neo faltered. She didn't really have much else to say. She didn't have any hobbies or interesting things to talk about. And she definitely didn't want to talk about her past. Tears once again started to well up in Neo's eyes.

Yang scooted closer to the adorable girl in front of her.

"Come here," Yang said as she brought Neo into a sitting hug.

The two girls settled against each other. Neo marveled at how warm the blonde was, she seemed to exude an aura of warmth. Yang on the other hand reveled in the soft feeling of the small girl curled up in her arms.

Both girls smiled behind the other's back.

_This is nice._ They both thought. _I don't ever want to let go._

**A/N: And that's Six. Hope you're enjoying thus far. Lots of cuteness in this chapter. As all ways I'd love to hear whatever you think, every review counts.**

**Enjoy.**


	7. Chapter 7

"Wow you're so good at this!" Ruby exclaimed.

Cinder had once again beaten Ruby in a gta race, this time by only twenty seconds. Ruby probably would have been doing better if her mind had been focused on the game.

But every time she tried to focus she would feel Cinder's leg graze her own, sending a delicious tingle through her body. At that point Ruby had simply resigned herself to her fate.

_It's not soooo bad._

_Please, you love it._

_Shut up brain!_

_You know I'm right._

…

Cinder turned to Ruby ready to ask if she wanted to play again. But when she moved her head over she suddenly became aware of just how close they were sitting together. Cinder could feel Ruby's breath on her cheek, it was shallow, uneven.

Their eyes met and they both quickly looked away, breathing even more quickly. They both chanced a look back at the girl beside them and again found themselves mesmerized by the other's eyes.

Cinder wasn't sure who moved first but she soon realized that their faces were inching closer and closer together.

_Is she? Am I? Are we going to? _

Soon they were a scant inch apart from each other. Cinder saw Ruby's head tilt to the left, she followed Ruby's lead, preparing herself for what she thought was to come…

But as their luck would have it, it was at that moment that the shout of a panicked blonde punctured the air around the intimate pair. They both froze in place, unable to move, not wanting to. They could both hear the thunderous footsteps of Ruby's older sister as she came flying down the stairs.

"Ruby you didn't call uncle Qrow! We should have been home twenty minutes ago!" Yang yelled as she started scrambling to get her boots on.

Ruby jumped up from the couch and ran to get her shoes and bag, hoping against hope that Yang hadn't bared witness to what had almost transpired moments before.

"Shit, I totally forgot. Sorry Cinder! We'll see you guys in school tomorrow!" Ruby yelled over her shoulder as she joined her sister in rushing out the door.

The door slammed shut behind the sisters leaving Cinder alone in the living room.

_Did that happen? Am I dreaming? It was like she was going to… kiss me? And I was going to kiss her back? I think? Why does this all have to be so confusing?_

Cinder saved the game and turned off the console and the t.v. She knew dinner needed to be made, but she wanted to talk to her sister now that their guests had left.

_I hope she got along well with Yang. She did seem to be unusually smiley._

Cinder decided she would go upstairs and check on her sister before making dinner. She climbed the stairs one at a time, turned the corner and knocked on Neo's door. Their was no response. She knocked again, and still nothing.

She opened the door a sliver to peer into the room. What she saw surprised her.

There was Neo, lying in bed asleep. She was curled up into an adorable little ball under the covers with a wide smile adorning her small face. But that wasn't the shocking part.

Ever since she was eight Neo had slept with her little pink teddy bear. But at that moment Cinder could see no sign of the bear. Neo hadn't gone a day without it since that first time they had moved.

_It's probably best if I let her sleep, it's been a long day and she seems so at peace._

Cinder quietly closed the door and made her way back down stairs.

* * *

The two sisters walked quickly down the street. The sun was setting and very soon there would be only moonlight left to show them the way home.

Neither girl spoke for a while. Ruby kept playing the events of the evening over and over in her head.

_I almost kissed her! How did that happen?_

_You both leaned in…_

_Did she?_

_Duh_

_Are you sure? I'm not sure if she did?_

_What else could it have been?_

_Umm…._

_Exactly_

_Are you sure?_

_Positive_

Ruby was so lost in thought that she didn't realize that Yang had asked her a question. Ruby snapped herself out of her thoughts and focussed her attention on her sister beside her; a decision she immediately regretted.

"I'm sorry Yang, could you repeat that?" Ruby asked apologetically.

"I just wanted to know if you had fun making out with your new girlfriend~" Yang teased.

"I, What? We didn't make out!" Ruby half shouted indignantly.

"So you admit she is your girlfriend!" Yang replied triumphantly.

"NO! I didn't say that! That's not how it is!" Ruby moaned.

"You two sure looked comfy sitting on that couch~" Yang rebutted.

"Oh my god Yang, it's not like that!" Ruby had buried her face into the hood of her jacket.

"Ok, ok. Whatever you say, ladykiller." Yang teased again.

"Oh yeah! What were you doing with Neo then? Huh?" Ruby countered.

Yang opened her mouth to respond but found herself at a loss for words. She closed her mouth and turned her face forwards. A light blush began to spread across her cheeks.

"Ooh, the magnificent Yang Xiao-Long speechless, and embarrassed. It must have been pretty heavy stuff~" Ruby said, glad to finally have something on her sister.

"No, it was nothing like that!" Yang shouted.

Ruby was a bit taken aback by her sister's reaction. Ruby wondered what had happened between her sister and the short girl that could have Yang so wound up.

"I'm sorry," Ruby said. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."

Yang sighed. "It's alright Ruby, I shouldn't have shouted at you."

The sisters continued to walk in silence for a couple of blocks before Ruby's curiosity got the better of her.

"So Yang, what did happen with you and Neo?" Ruby asked shyly.

Once again a light blush made its way across Yang's face. She wasn't sure if she wanted to tell Ruby about everything that had happened.

"I don't know…" Yang began hesitantly.

"Come on, we're sister's, we can tell each other anything, right?" Ruby smiled at Yang.

"Well I guess you're right," Yang began. "So, when I went upstairs Neo led me up to her room. We went and sat down by this hugenormous window overlooking the beach. The room was all Neo colored, pink and white and brown. We sat there for a while quietly. I was ready to try and talk but then she did the most amazing thing."

"What? What did she do?" Ruby asked excitedly, her curiosity once again winning out over her self control

"She said hello. Just one word. Hello. But it was the most beautiful thing I had ever heard Rubes. I swear it's like she took all the angels' voices and made them into her own. I couldn't speak for a while I was so amazed. Then I decided I should try and talk a little bit about myself. I told her about us, my hobbies, my personality. She didn't once stop smiling."

Yang paused and took a deep breath.

"But then I asked her about herself. She tried to speak but her voice just seemed to give out. She started to cry again so I gave her a patented Xiao-Long comfort hug. We just sat like that for a long while. Maybe an hour, I lost track of time. We just sat their in front of the window, rocking together. Then she surprised me again."

"What did she do?" Ruby asked excitedly, unable to stop herself.

"She looked up at me. Her eyes looked like they changed color to an almost purple pink, just like mine. Then she leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. I was too stunned to say anything. She started laughing and I swear I could have died happy."

"Ahhhh, that's so cute~!~!" Ruby was literally bouncing with glee. "And you make fun of me!"

Yang considered telling her sister about the last part of the evening but decided she'd rather keep it to herself. So instead she simply nodded at her sister's outburst, a shit eating grin plastered on her face.

* * *

Cinder was almost finished making dinner for herself and her sister when she heard the soft patter of footsteps crossing the living room. She turned to see Neo groggily stumbling her way into the kitchen.

Neo pulled out a chair and sat at the table, laying her head in her hands. Cinder plated their meal and brought it over to the table. The sisters helped themselves to spaghetti and meatballs, dolling out fair portions.

They ate in silence, both content with the quiet that filled the room. Cinder finished her food first and decided that it would be a good time to try and talk with her younger sister.

"Hey girly, how are you doing? Feeling any better?" Cinder asked the girl sitting opposite her.

Neo swallowed the food in her mouth and spoke. "I'm absolutely wonderful, thank you. Best I've felt in a long time."

Cinder was a little surprised at her sister's response. She had not expected such a positive response, or really any kind of verbal response. To hear her sister's voice and to hear it sound so free and happy made Cinder smile. A warm, genuine smile.

"What has you in such a good mood?" Cinder asked, her tone light but slightly bewildered.

Neo thought for a moment before simply replying, "Yang."

"So you two hit it off I take it?" Cinder asked.

"You could say that," Neo replied, her smile audible in her words.

"That's wonderful," Cinder said. She was delighted that her sister seemed to be making a friend.

Cinder let her sister finish eating while she started to clean up the dishes. While she was scrubbing the pot, Cinder remembered she had something she had been meaning to ask her sister about.

"Hey Neo, what happened to your teddy? When I went up to check on you I didn't see it with you." Cinder inquired.

"You must have just missed it," Neo dismissed.

"Yeah, I must have," Cinder replied.

At that the two girls gathered their things and got ready for bed. Both sisters went to sleep thinking about their new friends.

* * *

A couple of miles down the road a slumbering blonde clutched a small pink teddy bear to her chest, smiling as she thought about the amazing girl it had been a gift from.

**A/N: There it is, se7en. A little on the shorter side I know but I wanted to separate this from the next chapter. As always I hope you enjoyed, feel free to leave a comment or review, anything you'd like. Until next time, enjoy.**

**Side note - I'm thinking of writing my next story with a focus on HoodWitch (Ruby/Glynda) seeing as there are practically no real stories for them and I really like the pairing. I'd love to know what you think.**


	8. Chapter 8

She woke with a start as an unfamiliar sound filled her ears. She looked around and noticed she wasn't in her bed. Instead she found herself lying on the steps of an oddly familiar staircase. She turned to face towards the noise emanating from down the stairs.

_What is that sound? It's weird, kind of wet sounding. Was that a moan? Is someone hurt?_

The girl quickly got to her feat and rushed down the stairs, taking two steps at a time. She rounded the corner into the living room to see a bewildering sight.

_Is that…me? And Cinder? Are we?_

_Yep!_

_Ummm…_

_Yes?_

Ruby couldn't think. She saw herself making out passionately with Cinder on the couch before her, arms wrapped around each other, eyes closed in passion.

Suddenly Ruby found herself inside the Ruby that was seated on the couch.

_Oh, her lips are so soft and warm!_

_And her hair is so soft_

_I can feel her…_

_No you pervert_

_Hey, I'm you remember_

…

_That's what I thought_

"Hey Ruby~"

Ruby heard the interfering voice but chose to ignore it, electing to continue kissing the admittedly smoking hot girl she was totally making out with.

"Ruby~" The voice called again.

This time Ruby felt her focus being dragged away from the obsidian haired girl in front of her. Slowly the scene before her faded and was instead replaced by the face of an obnoxious blonde, a wicked smile on her face.

"Must have been one hell of a dream," Yang teased as she made her way over to the door.

Ruby blushed furiously, afraid of what she might have said in her sleep. Hopefully Yang would let it drop. But Ruby's thoughts continued to wonder about the almost magical dream she had just awoken from.

_So that's a thing that happened_

_You're god damn right!_

_That was…_

_Incredible?_

…_yeah_

_Now if only we could do that outside of our dreams_

She shook her head to cleanse her thoughts. She quickly got out of bed and prepared herself for school, trying to focus on the task at hand. It was finally friday, the best day of the week. She wasn't sure what she wanted to do for the weekend but she knew it wasn't homework.

_Maybe I could ask Cinder if she wants to do something. That could be lots of fun. Oooh, maybe a sleepover~_

Ruby's mind began to race as she considered all of the possibilities a sleepover could provide for her.

_Opportunities *wink*_

_Stop it!_

_It was your thought_

_Damn you_

* * *

Ruby stepped out of her room and made her way down the hall to the kitchen. Stepping through the door she saw her sister and her uncle sitting beside each other eating cereal and talking jovially.

"There she is~" Yang greeted her sister, talking through a mouthful of food.

"Good morning," Ruby greeted them. She walked over to the counter to get a bowl and a spoon. Sitting down at the table, she poured herself a bowl of cereal and began eating.

"So do you two have any plans for the weekend?" Qrow asked. "I have a business trip from this afternoon till sunday so I won't be home for a couple days. You girls can take care of yourselves, right?"

"Yeah, don't worry about it," Yang said, a conspiratorial smirk crossing her face briefly before she hid it behind her spoon.

"And I had better not come home to find a mess. I don't want to hear from the neighbors that you threw another three day rager" This comment was aimed at Yang who visibly deflated at his scolding remark.

"It was just one time," Yang dismissed, hiding her disappointment.

"Alright, whatever you say." Qrow responded.

The three ate in silence before the sisters realized they had to head out soon.

"Bye girls, I'll see you on sunday! Make sure you eat more than just cookies!" Qrow's voice trailed off as the front door slammed behind the sisters. He was going to miss those two.

The sisters walked side by side down the road. Ruby thought for a moment before turning to Yang.

"Do you think we could invite Cinder over for a sleepover?" Ruby's voice was hesitant but hopeful.

"Oooh, want to spend more time with your girlfriend~?" Yang teased.

Ruby blushed but held her ground. "You know it's not like that!"

"Oh sure, that's why you were moaning her name in your sleep." Yang prodded.

_Was I really moaning her name? _Ruby's face became even more red.

"Neo could come too, you two could hang out," Ruby tried, hoping to distract the goading blonde.

At the mention of Cinder's adorable little sister Yang froze. She really wanted to spend more time with the adorable pink and brown haired girl.

"Well?" Ruby asked pleadingly, her face contorting to mimic the look of a wounded puppy.

Yang knew she couldn't say no to that face, not that she even remotely desired to.

"Ok, sure." Yang replied. "But uncle Qrow doesn't need to know alright?"

"Ok," Ruby responded excitedly.

* * *

The sisters soon arrived at school, splitting up to get to homeroom before the bell rang. They waved to each other as they mixed in with the crowd of students.

Ruby walked down the hall deep in thought.

_How can I ask Cinder if she wants to come over? Will she even want to? What did that moment on the couch mean?_

Ruby sat at her seat in the back of the room still deep in thought. She suddenly looked up from her desk when she heard the sound of a beautiful girl sitting down beside her. She turned to see Cinder in all of her glory, eyes shining brightly, hair drawn elegantly down her face.

_Wow she's pretty_

_Pretty fucking hot!_

_HEY!_

_You know it's true_

…

"Good morning Ruby," Cinder greeted the red haired girl sitting beside her. Cinder didn't know what to think about her. Cinder knew she liked Ruby, a lot. Probably more than just a friend even and it was clear Ruby at least kind of felt the same way. Right?

"Hey Cinder," Ruby replied cheerily, trying to shake away her perverse thoughts.

Neither girl spoke for a moment, unsure of what to say. Ruby remembered she had something to ask Cinder about but at that moment the bell rang.

_It can wait till next period right? _Ruby thought as she packed her bag and walked with Cinder to her next class.

* * *

_Ugh, how can one man be so boring? I swear he could put a t rex to sleep_

_You still need to ask Cinder if she wants to sleep over_

_Yeah, I know_

_Well do it soon_

* * *

The two girls walked side by side to the cafeteria. Port's class had once again been a special kind of hell on earth so they were both glad to be free. As they walked through the halls their hands would every so often brush past each other gently. Both girls could feel the electric tingle the chaste contact elicited but neither had the courage to deepen their contact or say anything.

They soon arrived in the cafeteria, getting into line for food. It was a shorter wait then usual since it wasn't pizza day. Once they had procured their meals they made their way over to that table in the corner.

Cinder was faintly surprised to see Neo already at the table, sitting rather close to Yang. They were speaking quietly with each other and Cinder saw Neo beaming at the blonde girl. It was good to see her sister smiling again.

Ruby was stunned to see her sister looking almost nervous as she sat mere inches from the drastically shorter girl beside her. Yang must really like her.

Cinder and Ruby sat down opposite of their respective sisters, digging into their meals. Ruby again remembered her question and turned to Cinder.

"Hey, I don't suppose you want to come over to my house today? We could even have a sleepover, if you want." Ruby asked, her voice rising as she spoke as her excitement peeked.

Cinder's mind suddenly sped up incredibly fast trying to think about what Ruby had just said.

_Yes, yes, this is your chance! But what about Neo? _

Ruby saw the apprehension in Cinder's eyes and quickly backpedaled. "I mean, you don't have to or anything. Neo can come too, if she wants to. Yang wouldn't mind."

"Of course I want to," Cinder responded perhaps a little too quickly. She looked across the table to see her sister smiling and nodding at the proposition.

"Let me just let my parents know where we'll be," Cinder said grinning.

She pulled out her phone and sent a quick text to her mother explaining the situation. She didn't expect a reply, she just wanted to make sure she could tell her parents that she had told them in advance.

Cinder smiled again. Her mind began to race at the possibilities a sleepover with Ruby could have. All of the things they could do together.

The four girls all finished their lunches in silence, each thinking about the evening ahead. They were all really excited. The lunch bell finally rang signaling the return to classes. They got up and dealt with their trash slowly. All of them waved goodbye as they went their separate ways for class.

* * *

"And that's how you find the effective resistance of parallel resistors." The teacher's voice droned on.

So far all of Ruby's classes had gone on like this. Incessant droning on boring topics. She just wanted to skip to the end so she could spend some one on one time with Cinder

_Yeah, one on one_

_Shut up brain!_

_I just wanna feel her soft hands on me_

_Gah, that's it. I give up!_

_Are we submissive? I always thought we'd take the lead_

_Ok, that's enough little miss pervert!_

Ruby dragged her focus back to physics. They were learning about circuits and resistivity. The teacher was an older man with short gray hair. He was a nice enough guy, and he had a funny tendency of unknowingly speaking in double entendres.

She remembered a particularly memorable time he had told the class about when he had been mountain climbing with a buddy and they had come across a crevice. He went on to explain how deep the crevice was and how warm it was inside. He went as far as to explain how he had stuck his whole head into the gaping hole.

But, back in the present, Cinder looked up at the clock to see that there were only five minutes until the day was over. Five minutes before she was free for the weekend. Five minutes before it was just her and Ruby.

Those five minutes dragged on and on. With each glance at the clock Cinder could swear she saw the seconds hand moving backwards. Finally, after the longest five minutes in history, the bell rang, releasing the poor students from yet another rather unintentionally suggestive anecdote from their oblivious professor.

Cinder and Ruby grabbed their bags and practically sprinted out the door. They weaved through the crowd of students, not quite managing to avoid bumping into people, giving rushed apologies. They quickly reached the front of the school and started looking around for their sisters.

"Hey Ruby, Neo and I have to go home and grab our night stuff, could you give me your address so we can find you?" Cinder asked.

"Sure," Ruby replied brightly. "Here, I'll put it into your phone."

Ruby held out her hand and Cinder reached out to give the red haired girl her phone. As the phone changed hands those same hands brushed gently past each other.

Ruby could feel herself blush as she put her address into Cinder's phone. Once done she handed the phone back to Cinder. Once again their hands met for a few short moments. Ruby felt a shiver travel down her spine and make its way to a recently more and more familiar place.

The two girls stood grinning from the contact before being savagely interrupted by an obnoxious Blonde.

"Heya Rubes, enjoying yourself there?" Yang teased.

"No! We were just waiting for you to hurry the hell up!" Ruby replied defiantly, hoping to hide her embarrassment.

"Sure, that's what happened," Yang laughed, sending a comically over exaggerated wink to her sister.

The two sisters continued to go at each other. As they spoke Cinder's sister slowly made her way over to the trio. Neo waved to her sister, smiling widely. She was obviously excited to be spending the night with their new friends.

As Neo came into view Yang seemed to falter. She kept teasing Ruby but she became too distracted to give it her all.

"So are we all ready to get going?" Yang asked. Her eyes traveled between the three girls around her, lingering on the shortest and cutest of them.

"No Yang, I already told you. They have to go home and grab their things before they can come over." Ruby replied exasperatedly.

Ruby had already told Yang this, but Yang had forgotten that, just as she had forgotten just about everything she new when a certain pink eyed girl had gotten close to her.

"Oh, ok well. I guess we'll see you two soon then." Yang said to the other sister pair.

"Yeah," Cinder replied. "We should be there in around an hour."

"Ok, see you guys then," Ruby said with a smile.

At that the four girls turned to leave, each sister pair heading to their respective households to prepare for the night that was to come.

A/N: And that's eight. Things are starting to get exciting! What could possibly happen at this sleepover? As always I'm eager to hear what you thought about the chapter and the story in general so by all means leave a review or send me a pm.

**In other news I published a little intro/teaser for a new story I'm contemplating writing. I'd love it if you'd check it out and tell me what you think. I think it's a good idea with lots of potential but I need some feedback.**

**As always I hope you enjoyed, till next time.**


	9. Chapter 9

"Oh, this is going to be great~!" Ruby gushed as she walked home with her sister. "I can't wait, this sleepover is going to be so much fun!"

"Let's try and not have too much fun now, Rubes" Yang teased.

"Yang! Damn it. How many times do I have to tell you, it's not like that!" Ruby shouted exasperatedly at her sister.

"Sure it's not. That's why you were sucking face with Cinder on the couch yesterday," Yang replied giddily. Teasing Ruby was just too much fun.

"We weren't… I wasn't… Damn it Yang!" Ruby couldn't find the words to defend herself.

_What was that? You can't let her say that!_

_Well she isn't completely wrong…_

…

_You can't tell me you weren't going to_

…

_You know I'm right_

Yang laughed heartily at her sister's flustered state but quickly shut up when her sister finally found a retort.

"Yeah, well what about you and Neo? It's like she has you whipped!" Ruby finally said.

Ruby giggled at the realization that Yang did seem to be on Neo's leash. She mimed cracking a whip in the air, adding the appropriate sound effect.

Yang blushed and averted her gaze. Ruby kept repeating the motion, each time with more and more enthusiasm.

"Ok, ok, I get it," Yang finally said. "Just stop, jeez."

Ruby again giggled, glad to finally have something to tease the bothersome blonde about.

* * *

"Hey girly? You in there?" Cinder asked as she waved her hand in front of her sister's face. They had been walking for about five minutes and in all that time Neo had just walked leisurely, head held high, with the largest, silliest smile Cinder could ever remember seeing on her face.

At her sister's beckoning Neo was drawn out of her daydream to look at her sister questioningly. Her gaze was inquisitive, if a little disappointed to be pulled out of her daydream.

"Mhm?" Neo asked wordlessly.

"Looks like somebody is excited for tonight," Cinder started. Neo flashed her sister a large smile and nodded enthusiastically.

"It's great to have friends," Cinder said simply. Neo couldn't agree more.

Neo loved having someone she could call her friend. She wasn't sure what it was about the blonde, but she felt safe in her arms. She felt as though Yang was an immovable part of the ever flowing and changing world around her and she wanted to grab on and hold tight.

* * *

The two sister's soon arrived back home and swung open the door revealing a house as empty as they had left it. It was as if their parents never came home at all. Putting that thought aside, the two girls quickly ran about gathering all of the things they'd need for a sleepover.

_Pajama's? Check. Toothbrush? Check. Games? Check._

Cinder quickly gathered all of her necessities and packed them into a small black duffel bag. She effortlessly hefted it onto her shoulder and headed back downstairs.

Neo had a little bit more trouble picking out what she wanted to bring. Digging around her dresser she finally settled on a pink tank top and a pair of light brown fuzzy bottoms. She got up to leave her room when something caught her eye.

She wasn't normally a messy person but she had somehow managed to forget a glass soda bottle on her night stand. She thought for a moment before sticking it into her bag.

Sliding down the stairs, Neo found her sister patiently waiting on the living room couch. As Neo reached the bottom of the staircase, Cinder turned and stood leading the way to the door. Making sure to lock up, the sisters started their short walk to Ruby and Yang's house, the sun just starting to dip below the horizon.

* * *

Ruby ran to the door and jarred it open. She looked around expectantly but yet again there was nobody there. She slowly shut the door and turned to walk back to the kitchen.

"Jeez Rubes, relax. I'm sure they'll be here soon," Yang reassured her little sister.

Ruby huffed, burying her head in her elbows as she leaned forward onto the kitchen table.

"You can help me make sleepover snacks if you want," Yang offered. So far the blonde had baked three batches of cookies and had set out an assortment of candies and drinks.

"Pass," Ruby huffed. She was really really bad at waiting. Patience was one of her greatest weaknesses.

Luckily for her, the doorbell rang soon after that, signaling beyond a shadow of a doubt that their guests had finally arrived. She leapt up from her seat and barreled down the hall to the front door.

Once again she flung it open, this time to finally be met with the smiling, if nervous, faces of her new friends.

"Hey guys! Glad you could make it. We're almost done preparing everything. You can bring your stuff with me," Ruby said, unable to contain her excitement.

As Ruby turned, Cinder couldn't help but feel a grin breakout across her face. What was it about that girl that was just so enchanting?

The two sisters, led by Ruby, made their way into the kitchen to join Yang. When they stepped in, Yang put down her oven mitts and greeted them with a warm smile and a hello~.

"So I was thinking we start with some movies, then maybe we could play some games, then, then, ahhh!" Ruby was again unable to contain her excitement.

"That sounds like a great idea," Cinder commended.

"Alright, well I'm done in here. If you want anything just grab a plate," Yang said.

Ruby quickly grabbed a plate and began to pile it high with soft, warm, chocolate chip cookies. Cinder elected to go with a more substantial meal of chips and soda. Neo decided some licorice and popcorn would be enough for herself. Yang quickly grabbed more of what her short friend had taken and swore she could hear the faint sound of a whip cracking.

They all followed Ruby into the den where an impressively large television was hooked up to an xbox. Netflix was already running and there was a an impressive list of possibilities for the girls to choose from.

"So, what movie should we watch first?" Ruby asked no one in particular.

"I already have one picked out," An excited Yang replied.

Yang threw herself down on the love seat opposite of the t.v. as she grabbed the controller and hit play. Neo quickly hopped over to sit beside Yang while Ruby and Cinder sat down on the floor in front of the t.v.

As the opening credits started to play Yang could feel the short girl beside her lean against her side. Yang turned to look at the girl and was met with shining pink eyes and a smile that left her forgetting how to words.

Neo wordlessly took Yangs arm and draped it over her shoulder, snuggling deeper into the blonde's side. Yang smiled at the younger girl's action and turned to face the movie that had finally started. The faint sound of a whip cracking could be heard in the distance.

* * *

The movie started off simple enough. New girl moves into town, has a hard time fitting in, struggles to make friends. Then the protagonist meets her, they get along great, become fast friends and eventually fall in love. Sound familiar?

As the movie progressed the two girls on the floor began to inch closer. Neither of them realized it, but soon their hands were a mere inch a part.

A sudden burst of sound from the t.v. had them jump in their seats, their hands inadvertently touching. They both pulled back their hands embarrassed, faces flushed at the contact. But they both put their hands back down beside each other. Eventually they became more comfortable with the contact, resulting in Ruby resting her hand on Cinder's. Both girls smiled at the feeling of the other's hand.

_Her hand is so soft_

_I bet that's not the only thing that's soft_

_Hey you, no need to go there_

_You were thinking it_

Ruby tore herself away from her thoughts and turned her attention back to the movie. The couple had just gone out on their first date. A movie and dinner, how romantic. They were walking home in the twilight and when they reached the doorstep they turned to each other expectantly.

Ruby knew what was coming. The two actors leaned in slowly, turning their heads as they got closer. Ruby was shaking with anticipation as the actors' lips met on the screen. How she wished she could do that with the girl sitting next to her.

Ruby turned to look at the black haired girl beside her. She was surprised to see burning amber meet her shining silver gaze. Cinder could see the same feeling in Ruby's eyes as she herself was harboring in hers. The two girls sat staring at each other as the movie continued playing. Neither girl had the courage to make the first move, but they both knew what they wanted.

Ruby steeled herself for what she was about to do, but was suddenly distracted by an oddly familiar sound emanating from behind her. Ruby turned to face the back of the room and Cinder's eyes followed to see an unexpected sight.

Sitting on the couch behind them they saw Yang and Neo. The two girls were sitting close together, arms draped over the other, and Neo seemed to be rather enthusiastically kissing the stunned blonde.

Ruby and Cinder watched in surprised awe as their sisters continued their kiss. Finally, after several seconds, Yang broke away to take a much needed breath of oxygen. Neo looked at her smiling and Yang's face slowly blushed.

"Wow," Was all that Ruby could manage say after the shocking show.

Yang and Neo turned to see that they had been caught in the act. Both girls flushed a little at the wide eyes of their sisters.

No one spoke for a moment, the only sound being the movie playing in the background, now long forgotten.

"So that's a thing that happened," Yang tried, hoping to lighten the atmosphere a bit.

A/N: And that makes nine. I know, I'm evil for leaving it on a cliff hanger. But it'll be worth the wait.

It's great to see so many people enjoying the story. As always I hope you enjoyed. If you have any comments or suggestion please don't hesitate to let me know. All criticism is welcome, anything that helps make the experience better for everyone.

Also, if you're looking for something a little different I've started a 'Ruby has a crush on teacher' story. It's still a very abstract idea at the moment so any critique helps. I'd be happy to incorporate any ideas. etc.

Anyway, keep reading, keep writing, keep being awesome, till next time.


	10. Chapter 10

The room remained quiet. The sounds of the movie being drowned out by the deafening silence of the four girls. They all looked around at each other, nobody knowing what to say.

Neo was still smiling widely, seemingly impervious to the awkwardness of the situation. Yang sat next to her, trying to keep a strait face, but her still spreading blush betrayed her inner nervousness. Ruby and Cinder simply stared at their respective sisters, both shocked by what they had just witnessed.

_Didn't see that coming. _Cinder thought. _I had no idea Neo liked Yang like that. Or girls like that for that matter._

"So, uh," Ruby began, unsure how to approach the situation.

"Would you two mind giving us a minute," Yang said in the most even voice she could manage.

"Sure, we'll be in my room if you need us," Ruby said as she hurriedly got up and led Cinder down the hall to her room.

Once Yang heard the door to Ruby's room close she turned her full attention to the girl sitting beside her. Neo looked up into Yang's lilac eyes and smiled widely, and if Yang wasn't mistaken, a little smugly.

"Care to explain what that was about?" Yang asked slowly, unsure herself of what exactly had occurred.

"What?" Neo asked innocently. Her voice rang clear and smooth through the air. Yang felt her breath hitch in her throat.

_Wow her voice is beautiful. Focus hot head!_

"You kissed me," Yang stated simply for the shorter girl. Neo smiled and nodded her head at the blunt description of what had happened. When Yang didn't continue, Neo's face suddenly dropped and her eyes began to water.

Yang noticed quickly and brought the pink eyed girl into her arms.

"Hey, there's no need to cry. I'm not mad or upset. I was just a little surprised, that's all. I…" Yang wasn't sure how to continue. She was usually so skillful when it came to talking to people, but whenever she saw Neo it was like her brain just clocked out.

Neo pulled tighter to Yang, burying her face in the blonde's chest. Neo took a few deep breaths to steady her breathing. As she inhaled her nose was filled with the soothing scent of lavender and honey.

Yang leaned back in her seat to look at Neo's face. Neo met Yang's glance with eyes nearly purple in hue. Yang was lost in wonder at the beautiful shift in color and barely noticed that those stunning orbs where getting closer.

Yang felt her eyes flutter shut as she once again welcomed the soft, warm sensation that was Neo's lips on her own. Yang couldn't help but smile at the adorable girl across from her. She felt rather than saw that same girl break their kiss to put on a dazzling smile of her own.

Yang opened her eyes to see Neo's own eyes shift from lilac to a brilliant rose red.

"It would seem that you have an EYE for a certain someone," Yang joked.

Neo couldn't help but roll her eyes at just how physically painful the blonde's play on words had been. If the compliment hadn't been aimed at her, Neo very well might have gone deaf. Yang simply giggled at the short girl's reaction.

"So, what does this mean for us?" Yang asked, allowing her nerves to show.

_What is up with me? _Yang thought. _I'm like a bumbling school boy._

Neo smiled at Yang's question and decided the best answer would be another kiss. But this time she leaned in slower, allowing Yang to feel her hot breath on her neck, to see their lips come together. This kiss was slower, deeper, far more intense. Neo held on as long as she could before her little lungs couldn't take it.

Breaking away with a quiet gasp, Neo looked into Yang's eyes to see she had gotten her message across; crystal clear. The two girls stayed close together, foreheads pressed against each other, eyes lost in the other's gaze. Yang smiled at Neo.

_So I guess we're together now. Wow that feels good to say. She's all mine._

* * *

The door closed with a quiet click as Ruby threw herself onto her bed. She wasn't sure what to be thinking. On one hand she was happy for her sister. It was clear she cared quite a lot about Neo. But another part of her was rather upset. This was the second time in the last twenty four hours that Yang had interrupted her and Cinder.

There was no doubt left in her mind, Cinder was definitely going to kiss her back. But now the mood was completely ruined. Ruby turned to look at the amber eyed girl. She almost thought she could see that same disappointment mirrored in the older girl's eyes.

Neither girl spoke for a moment. There was still an electricity in the air between them and they both were sensitive to its touch. Cinder gathered her courage and moved to sit beside Ruby on her bed.

Ruby felt the bed dip as Cinder sat down next to her. The feeling of Cinder's leg against her own made her brain become fuzzy and caused her heart to hammer in her chest.

_Come on, it's not that hard. Just turn your head and lean in_

_But I can't_

_Why not?_

_Because_

_She definitely feels the same way!_

_I know, but…_

_No, no buts!_

Ruby turned to the beautiful girl next to her, determination winning out over anxiety. She waited for those soft amber orbs to meet her piercing steely gaze. When their eyes met they both made clear their intentions.

It was slow at first. The space between their lips seemed to be decreasing at a speed akin to a turtle covered in glue nailed to a tree. But as the seconds passed the distance became shorter and shorter. They could feel the other's breath on their face as slowly but surely they inched closer.

When all that remained between them was the lengths of their noses, their eyes fluttered shut and their brains raced in anticipation of what was surely to come.

_I swear to god if Yang comes in right now I'll fucking kill her_

But thank the author, Yang didn't interfere with this long awaited climax.

Their lips came together almost hesitantly at first. The initial kiss being more of a light lip touch, over as soon as it began. But then came the second and the third kiss and those grew progressively more intense. Deeper and deeper until Ruby felt Cinder's lips part, inviting the red head into her mouth.

Ruby was happy to oblige but from the other room came the call of her sister.

"Hey guys, you can come back now. We, uh, sorted things out," Yang called to them.

_Damn it Yang, Again?_

"Alright, we'll…" Ruby's voice cracked. "Uh, be there in a second."

The two girls reluctantly allowed the distance between their lips to increase as they both stood up. The electricity in the air crackled and the atmosphere shifted from relaxing to tense.

_Why did Ruby's sister have to interrupt us? It was going so well. I finally had her. I still have her. At least I think I do. Damn it, now we need to talk about it._

"Hey Ruby," Cinder spoke softly as Ruby's hand reached for the door knob.

"Yes?" Ruby responded, still slightly flustered, unable to completely even out her breathing.

"I liked that," Cinder said.

"Me too," Ruby replied.

A/N: And that makes ten! We finally get some Ruby and Cinder time! As always I'm eager to hear what you think so please leave any comments or criticisms down below. I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter, keep reading, keep being awesome, till next time.


	11. Chapter 11

The door to the den opened and in stepped Ruby and Cinder. The two girls were beyond frustrated at the constant interruptions they had been receiving but chose to hold their tongues.

Sitting back down on the floor together they looked up expectantly at Yang and Neo. Ruby saw that Yang's smile had reached the point where it might permanently stretch out her face. Serves her right. Neo was practically bouncing in her seat positively beaming.

"So," Ruby began. "What's the scoop?"

Yang turned to look at Neo before excitedly exclaiming, "We're a thing!"

Neo finally blushed a little at the bluntness of her new girlfriend but her smile never wavered. Cinder was a little surprised by the sudden turn of events but decided it would be best to be as supportive of her sister as she could. Ruby on the other hand had suspected Yang had been harboring a crush on the short girl and decided Yang could do with a little of her own medicine.

"And you said I was obsessed!" Ruby teased. But she immediately realized what she had said and buried her face in her hands, blushing a deep crimson.

_I might as well have told Cinder I'm a stalker, Jeez._

_Hey don't sweat it, clearly she feels the same about you_

Ruby picked up her head to look sideways towards the object of her affection. Cinder was sitting back, leaning on her hands. She was smiling abashedly at Ruby, trying and failing to maintain eye contact.

"Sure looks like you are," Yang prodded back. It was so obvious to the blonde, why didn't those two just kiss already? But then the gears started turning.

_Those two are sitting a lot closer together than before. And they can't seem to look each other in the eye. No. Way. Yes, I'm sure of it._

"How was that kiss then?" Yang teased further. At that both Ruby and Cinder blushed furiously, unsure how the blonde could've known about their intimate encounter. Neo looked back and forth between her sister and her new girlfriend's sister and suddenly it clicked.

Neo started to giggle uncontrollably. She had to lean on Yang for support but as soon as Yang heard that magical sound escape Neo's lips she herself fell into a fit of giggles. The couch buddies soon couldn't control themselves and fell to the ground still laughing.

Both Ruby and Cinder glared at their respective sisters indignantly. How dare they make fun of them? They were in the same boat. The laughter continued to fill the room before finally subsiding with a loud gasp from Yang.

"Are you done now?" Ruby asked, clearly not happy with the previous series of events.

Yang and Neo shared a look before falling into another fit of giggles.

_I don't even know why I try_

_They should go somewhere else, give us time to talk to Cinder_

_I like the using our mouths idea, maybe with less words though_

_Perhaps, it depends on what she decides_

As Ruby's internal dialogue came to a finish so did Yang and Neo's second outburst. Ruby looked at the two offending girls and said, "Would you two mind taking your nonsense elsewhere? I have some things I need to discus with Cinder."

At the crimsonette's words, Cinder's pulse began to race. Her heart was fluttering, a warmth slowly spreading, filling her chest, making her light headed.

_Does this mean what I think it means? Is Ruby going to ask me to be her girlfriend too? Oh please, please, please, I hope so._

Yang and Neo followed Ruby's request, quietly making their way to the door. Before closing it Yang decided Ruby could do with a little more teasing.

"Just remember we're right across the hall, don't be too loud or anything." She added a sly wink for emphasis before ducking out the door.

Ruby blushed at her sister's words but tried her best to regain her composure. Turning around she was met with a beautiful sight. Cinder had decided to sit on the couch. But to say she was sitting on the couch was a horrendous injustice. The manner in which she sat was more like that of a goddess reclining in her palace than a high school girl slumped on a futon. The way she held herself was both enticing and awe inspiring for the red head.

Ruby stood for a moment too stunned to think, only capable of admiring the siren that beguiled her very being. Taking a deep breath, the gears started to turn, and she found herself able to move her mouth, but found she was unable to force the words out.

_Damn it brain, why you no work?_

_It's mouth, yell at him!_

_I can't, because you won't make him talk!_

Cinder had no idea the effect she was having on the girl before her. She simply sat admiring the view she had of her young crush. Cinder could see Ruby open her mouth to speak but no words were coming out. Cinder grew concerned as Ruby repeatedly opened and closed her mouth like a goldfish gasping for water in space after seeing it's mom naked in the shower.

"Ruby? Are you ok?" Cinder asked with concern. She got up from the couch and walked over to the still dazed girl. She reached out and put her hand onto Ruby's shoulder, finally breaking the spell she had unwittingly cast on her crush.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm cool as ice…" Ruby replied, her voice trailing off as she found herself mesmerized by the smoldering gaze of Cinder. Once again she found herself at a complete loss for words.

This time Cinder caught on to what it was that ailed her friend. She was abashed by the effect she was having on Ruby but at the same time it was oddly thrilling to know she had such power over the girl. Looking over Ruby's face, Cinder began to again appreciate the contours that seemed to have been carved from marble, laced in silk, and polished in gold.

She felt, rather than told herself to slowly lean in closer to Ruby. Their faces inched closer, Ruby finally giving up trying to tell Cinder how she felt and electing to show her instead.

This kiss was different from the ones that preceded it. This kiss was more deliberate. This kiss was more certain. This kiss held more passion. This kiss was not saying 'I like you'. This kiss was saying 'I like you THIS much'.

And oh boy did they like each other a lot. This kiss was full of energy. This kiss was full of want. This kiss was … getting a little PG-13.

The duo broke apart gasping for breath. Their breathing was ragged and their faces were flushed. They stood with their foreheads together, noses gently pressed, eyes half open.

"Ok, so, we should do that again," Ruby said. Her voice came in uneven intervals but her newfound excitement was very apparent.

"I'd like that," came Cinder's hushed reply.

They again closed the distance and this time their kiss was one of unbridled passion. They were relieved beyond words to finally be able to express their desires to each other.

They where soon breaking apart again to attempt to catch their collective breath and stop their hearts from beating out of their chests.

Ruby felt herself grow steadily warmer under the collar. Her body was on fire and the new sensation alarmed her with its fervor. The need to kiss Cinder again grew steadily in the young crimsonette.

"So does this mean we're together now?" Cinder asked timidly, praying she would receive the answer she so craved.

"Yes! Absolutely one hundred percent!" Ruby exclaimed, before adding quietly, "as long as you, um, as long as that's what you want."

Cinder smiled at Ruby's shy remark. To make sure she got her message across she leaned in and gave Ruby one final chaste kiss before pulling away.

"So it's official then?" Ruby asked, her smile infectious.

"Yep," Cinder grinned back, happier than she could ever remember being.

* * *

Neo half guided half dragged the bubbly blonde to the room across the hall. She pushed the door open and yanked the blonde inside. Once through the threshold, Yang found herself pinned up against the door by her shorter partner. The younger girl had a smug smile on her face. Yang was surprised by this sudden change in character but decided she quite liked it.

Neo reached up and gently placed her had on the blonde's neck. Pulling firmly, she brought the taller girl into a deep kiss. Yang tried but found herself unable to match the colorful girl's vigor.

As their kiss continued and deepened, Neo stepped back, guiding the pair to Yang's bed. As they reached the edge Neo spun around and threw Yang back onto the mattress. The blonde fell back landed softly, her hair bouncing almost as much as her rather sizable assets.

Neo climbed onto Yang's lap, straddling the older girl. She looked down at the beautiful sight before her and let out an appreciative hum of approval. Yang blushed at the sound and tried to turn her head.

But Neo reached down and cupped the girl's face, turning it back to look at her own. Neo smiled down at the blonde and her eyes shifted color. They had been their normal pink but where now bubbling, shifting from a deep lilac to a stunning vermillion.

Leaning forward, Neo brought their lips together. These kisses were slow and tender. They were sweet and they were brief.

But then they changed. Now they were longer. Now they were faster. Now they were more needy. Now they were becoming more than just kisses.

"Guys?" Ruby's voice traveled through the 'not as thick as Yang would have liked' door.

"We're all sorted out in here," Ruby called.

The girls broke apart with great reluctance. Yang couldn't help but feel rather annoyed with her sister, breaking up a heated moment like that. It's not like she had ever done that to Ruby.

"Alright, we'll be right there," Yang called back.

Neo was still kneeling over Yang's reclined form. Her breathing had yet to return to normal but her smug smile was still visible, a ghost on her lips. Yang liked this side of Neo. It was exciting in the best way, there was no knowing what she would get.

"To be continued…" Neo drawled down to Yang, sending a shiver down the blonde's spine.

_How can she do so much to me with just three little words?_

* * *

Ruby and Cinder looked up in unison as the door opened and allowed Yang and Neo to enter. Neo led Yang by the hand back over to the couch where they cuddled up under the blanket they found draped over the back. As Yang walked past her sister the echo of a peculiar cracking sound could be heard in the distance.

"So, we talked it over," Ruby began. _Yeah, 'talked'. Shut up you. _"And Cinder and I are officially going out!" She ended her announcement with a squeal of joy that brought a smile to Cinder's face.

"That's great," Yang replied.

"Yeah! So, back to movies now that that's all sorted?" Ruby asked.

"I suppose so," Yang droned with as much enthusiasm as she could muster.

_I'd much rather be back in my room with this little beauty_

They decided to watch a more thrilling movie, not needing any extra romance considering the events that had just unfolded. The movie was an older classic, Pulp Fiction.

The girls enjoyed the movie in relative silence, laughing at the jokes, cringing at the scary bits. At some point Ruby could feel Cinder's hand intertwine with her own, clasping gently but firmly. Ruby smiled at the contact and lowly leaned her head over to rest on Cinder's shoulder.

_This night couldn't have gone any better_

_Well I don't know about that_

_Shut up, we got the girl, we kissed the girl, what more could we want_

_I think you know what I'm thinking_

_Stop it you! No need to go there. Not yet at least_

_Alright, I'm just sayin_

_Well, how about you don't ' just say', ok?_

_Fine, be like that_

Soon the movie credits rolled and the lights were turned back on. The four girls looked around at each other and suddenly shared one thought.

"Game time!" They excitedly yelled in unison.

**_A/N: And eleven! Yay, happy February. Hope you enjoyed, as always please don't hesitate to let me know what you think, any and all comments are encouraged. _**

Anyways, keep reading, keep writing, keep being awesome. Till next time.


	12. Chapter 12

_How in the world did I end up here?_

_Are you seriously complaining about this?_

_Well, no. But it's still weird_

_So you don't like the view?_

_Well of course I do, but_

_But what?_

_It's distracting_

_Hell yeah it is!_

How? A fantastic question to ask about the current situation. How in the world did Ruby find herself under her new girlfriend, face inches from the older girl's rather aesthetically pleasing chest? Ruby herself wasn't so sure at that point.

Perhaps a step back would help to explain.

* * *

The lights came back on and illuminated the two new couples. Their movie had come to its spectacularly profound conclusion and they had all realized that it was now time for some games. What kind of games? Why all sorts. Ruby and Yang had amassed a rather extensive collection of games over the years and had all but mastered them all.

"Who wants to play a little strip poker?" Yang asked deviously, a sly smile showing on her face.

_Of course she would think of something like that_

_Hey, it's not such a bad idea_

_What? How could you think that?_

_We. How could __**we**__ think that?_

_Answer the damn question!_

_Well you do realize strip poker involves the removal of clothing_

_Yeah, no shit. That's why I don't wanna play_

_Not even if it means you get to see a certain raven haired beauty?_

_I… but… if… gah…_

_Well?_

_No_

_Really?_

_Yep_

_Ok, fine, our loss_

"Maybe next time," Ruby replied, chuckling nervously. The thought of seeing the more intimate details of her new girlfriend was an exciting idea to her, but not one she wanted to share, especially not with her sister!

"Well how about strip go fish?" Yang inquired still with a wry smile on her lips.

"How about pass," Ruby retorted.

"We could play strip twister!" Yang said. "I'm really flexible," She waggled her eyebrows at Neo eliciting a soft giggle that made her heart race.

"What is it with you and strip games?" Ruby asked exasperatedly.

"Hey, can't a girl have a little fun?" Yang asked, feigning innocence.

"Really?" Ruby asked incredulously.

"I like the idea," Neo offered quietly. "But maybe we save the stripping for later." She shot a pointed look at her new girlfriend that said more than enough.

"I'm down for twister if that's what everyone else wants to do," Cinder chimed in.

"I guess…" Ruby relented. But she was worried.

_I hope Yang doesn't cheat again. She is way to aggressive_

_Twister is a contact sport, remember?_

_Yeah_

_And we don't mind a little contact with Cinder do we?_

_Of course not, but…_

_So what's the worst that could happen?_

_I…_

_Nothing. Exactly_

_Actually…_

_LLLLETTTSSSS PLLLLAAAAAAYY!_

* * *

And that is how Ruby found herself in her current predicament, sandwiched between her girlfriends increasingly drool worthy chest and the floor. Not that she terribly minded, but having her sister watch on in amusement was not helping the situation.

"Alright, right hand red," Yang announced to the three still in the game. In a bizarre turn of events she had been eliminated first, but Ruby suspected it had something to do with wanting to admire the view.

_Oh no_

_What? We can totally reach it_

_Yeah, but not without burying our face even deeper_

_That's the best part!_

_Ugh_

With a little struggle and a quick deep breath, Ruby was able to reach red. But in the process she found herself now literally motor boating Cinder.

"Hey now Ruby, show a little restraint will you?" Yang cackled.

Cinder looked down to see just how close Ruby was. Noticing the rather intimate nature of their contact, she started to breath more quickly and her palms grew sweaty. Her knees became weak and her arms felt heavy. Before she could catch herself she fell and squashed Ruby, going limp as spaghetti.

With this new development Ruby found herself buried under Cinder. She had managed to bring her hand up to offer her face some protection from the falling girl but had somehow managed to turn that into an opportunity to feel up the newfound weight above her.

Yang burst out laughing at the events that unfolded before her. Neo stood up from her previously kneeling position to join the blonde in good natured amusement.

Ruby and Cinder floundered around for a couple of seconds before Cinder managed to roll off of Ruby and sit up straight. Both of them were a deep shade of scarlet and found it difficult to look up from the floor.

_Well that was awesome!_

_Hey!_

_What? It was_

_Well..._

_Yes?_

_But..._

_I'm listening_

_Damn you_

"What happened to showing restraint? I swear you're worse than me," Yang teased, still laughing at the two girls.

Ruby managed to mumble something unintelligible about gravity and how stupid it was. She then grabbed the twister mat and bunched it up into a ball before promptly defenestrating it with a huff.

"Stupid game," Ruby just wanted to move on and forget about the cursed game.

"Ok then. Maybe something a little less exciting," Yang mused.

"Yes please," Ruby exclaimed, her head held in her hands.

"Well, there's always good old truth or dare," Yang offered. Her voice was innocent enough, her tone even and almost uninterested.

But Ruby knew better. If they played truth or dare there would be no end to her embarrassment.

"Don't you think that's just a little cliche for a girls slumber party?" Cinder asked.

"Well… it's fun," Yang tried to justify her suggestion. "I mean, what better way to learn about each other?"

"We could just, you know, talk," Ruby offered sarcastically.

"Eh, what's the fun in that?" Yang asked. "We want some fun, don't we?"

"Not your kind of fun!" Ruby retorted.

_Maybe it wouldn't be so bad…_

_What?_

_We might get dared to kiss Cinder again_

_Why don't we just do it anyway?_

_I… that's a better idea_

_Obviously_

"Well if you guys don't want to have fun then fine. It's not my fault," Yang lamented as her idea was shot down like a clay pigeon hit with a rail gun.

"It is kinda getting late," Neo cut in, eyeing Yang with a strange look.

Yang swallowed a rising lump in her throat to turn and see that it was indeed rather late. If the clock was to be trusted then the hour was fast approaching midnight.

"Maybe we should start heading to bed," Neo continued, her gaze still locked on Yang. What was that look in her eyes? And why did it make Yang feel so…so what?

"Yeah, maybe we should…" Yang responded breathlessly.

"But I'm not tired yet," Ruby whined. She still wanted to have fun.

"Maybe you can take Cinder to your room and do something in there," Yang recommended off handedly, still focused on the short siren standing beside her.

_What? Cinder in my room?_

_YES!_

"Just keep it PG, will you?" Yang smirked at her little sister.

"Damn it Yang, must you?" Ruby moaned.

"Yes, yes I must. Now if you'll excuse me I believe I have a bed that is waiting for me," Yang replied. But she had no intention of sleeping so soon.

Yang took Neo's hand and together they left Ruby and Cinder in the den with only a short wave goodbye. Ruby realized she now had Cinder all to herself.

_Keep it PG my ass_

_Hehe, ass_

_Really? _

_You said ass_

_I swear, sometimes I just don't get you at all_

_But I'm you_

_Are you?_

_We're me, remember?_

_Stop it!_

_Hehe, okie_

Meanwhile Cinder's own thoughts were racing. It was just her and Ruby now, no more distractions, no more interruptions, just the two of them.

"You wanna, head to my room?" Ruby asked shyly.

"Ok," Cinder replied. She was excited but anxious, nervous but intoxicated by thoughts of Ruby, inflamed at the possibilities that could present themselves.

"Well then, follow me madam" Ruby said with a flourish, comically overselling the gentlemanly gesture.

"Why of course," Cinder played along, smiling at the cuteness of the childish action.

The pair made their way to the door and Ruby opened it with a low bow. Cinder giggled at the over exaggerated maneuver. They were ready to cross the hall into Ruby's room when a most peculiar sound made its way into the hall.

It sounded like the headboard of a bed banging against a wall as hot, steamy lesbian sex was taking place on a twin size mattress. The repeated banging was accompanied with the loud squeals of a girl clearly enjoying herself immensely.

"I wonder what could be going on in there?" Ruby thought aloud.

"Let's check it out," Cinder suggested.

They walked slowly down the hall, making as little noise as possible. As they got closer the squeals became louder and more intense. They reached the door and Ruby reached out and turned the handle…

* * *

They made it out into the hall and quickly dashed to Yang's room. Yang's brain was racing at the possibilities that were open to her. She remembered what Neo had said earlier, To be continued… She shivered at the thought.

She was quickly brought back to reality when she felt a small hand grasp her shoulder. She looked down to watch as the short Neo guided her into the middle of the room. Neo proceeded to hold a hand over Yang's eyes, silently telling her to keep them closed.

Yang stood as still as she could, waiting for the possible sensations that were sure to come. She soon felt something soft brush along her face. The feeling traveled down her cheek, to her neck, then back up her cheek.

_What is that? It's so soft. It's not her hand. Is it… a pillow? Why would she…_

Yang suddenly found herself spinning on the spot. Her eyes flew open to see a smiling Neo standing before her, trying and failing miserably to hide a pillow behind her tiny back.

"Oh, so that's how you want to play," Yang purred, inching her way closer to her bed. "That's cool, I can play dirty if that's what you want."

Yang gave Neo a sly wink before diving for her remaining pillow and spinning around to assault her former assailant. Neo was wholly unprepared for the attack and quickly found herself overwhelmed by the barrage of swings from the fiery blonde.

"Take that and that and this," Yang was merciless in her attacks, landing swing after swing on the now defenseless girl.

Only when Neo had fallen to the ground and covered her head with her arms did Yang finally relent.

"Do you surrender?" Yang asked triumphantly, believing she had won.

Neo peeked out from between her fingers to look up at Yang pitifully. Yang's expression softened at the sight of Neo's pale pink eyes. She watched Neo rise slowly and step towards her. Yang dropped her pillow and held her hands open for a hug.

Neo embraced her pillow assailant and squeezed tightly, eliciting a hum of contentment from the older girl. Breaking the contact, Neo leaned back to look the long haired blonde in her bright lilac orbs. Yang smiled at the shorter girl, happy to see she had been forgiven. But that feeling soon melted away as she watched Neo's eyes turn a devious shade of purple.

Yang suddenly found herself lying on her bed, looking up at the ceiling. Moments later the weight of her girlfriend found itself straddling her waist. Yang looked down to face the younger girl and saw a mischievous glint in her partners eyes.

"Um, why don't we call it even," Yang offered weakly as Neo slowly leaned down towards her.

Neo brought her hands up to cup the pinned girl's face delicately. She stared deeply into the girls eyes, contemplating her next move. She gently removed her hands from Yang's face and leaned in to whisper into her ear.

"I think you might need to be, pun-ished," Neo giggled at her play on words.

Yang suddenly found herself laughing uproariously at the comment. She was laughing and laughing, she couldn't stop if she tried. Soon she was out of breath but still she laughed. It took her several moments to realize it had not been Neo's joke that had caused her outburst, but the girl's thin fingers digging into her sides.

Yang began to squeal as Neo continued her all out assault on the misbehaving blonde. Yang began to buck her hips, trying and failing to buck her girlfriend off. They continued this until the sound of the door opening behind them caused Neo to finally relent.

"Everything okay in here?" Ruby asked cautiously, unsure of what she was interrupting.

"Ruby, help! I'm being attacked! I can't take much more!" Yang begged her little sister for assistance.

Ruby saw what was happening and a grim smile found its way onto her face.

"There is no help for those who condemn themselves," Ruby spoke profoundly, closing the door once more.

"No! Why have you forsaken me?" Yang called dramatically.

Neo smirked at Yang's remark and leaned down again to whisper into her ear.

"I think I have been justly retributed," Neo purred, causing Yang's whole body to quiver.

Yang smiled at that and replied, "I think I might require some recom-pants."

Suddenly Neo found the tables turned and felt herself pressed down into the bed by her former tickle toy. She knew she had no escape. There was no hope for escape, Yang would surely seek revenge.

But instead of fingers, Neo's mind was quickly flooded with the sensation of soft lips attacking her neck. She giggled at the contact, sensitive to the teasing touch. She squirmed as she felt those same lips turn to grazing teeth. The feeling was mind numbing, flooding her head with dark thoughts.

Yang stopped her frontal assault to stare into her girlfriends eyes. Neo smiled at the blonde. She clearly liked where this was heading. But riding shotgun wasn't her style, she preferred to grab the reigns.

"Yang, where did you put my laptop?" Ruby called.

_I swear to god, it's like she's trying to cockblock me. Cockblock? Clam trap? Snatch catch? Whatever._

"It should be in the kitchen," Yang called back reluctantly. Again with the interruptions, how could Ruby be so inconsiderate. Yang would never do such a thing to her.

With the mood sufficiently killed, Yang got up from the bed and sat herself down on the floor. Now what were they supposed to do? There weren't exactly a limitless number of possibilities or anything.

Neo pondered what they ought to do next and suddenly had a great idea. Remembering she had stuffed it into her bag, she quickly got up and retrieved the glass soda bottle and presented it to Yang.

"You wanna play spin the bottle?" Neo asked, smiling at the older girl.

"But it's just the two of us…" Yang responded confusedly.

Neo leaned in to whisper into Yang's ear once again, "Exactly."

**A/N: And that's twelve. Hope you enjoyed. Sorry it took a while for this one, stupid site wouldn't let me upload for the past day or so. As always I'd love to hear what you think, any and all comments are welcome, speak your mind. Otherwise, keep reading, keep being awesome, till next time.**


	13. Chapter 13

The door opened slowly and Ruby carefully stepped into the room. In her hands she carried her laptop and a plate full of snacks. She carefully navigated her way across the rather cluttered floor to sit beside Cinder.

"Ok, I brought us some sweets," Ruby said excitedly, quickly biting into the first of many cookies piled up on her plate.

"That's good," Cinder mused. Watching Ruby nomming on her treat was beyond adorable and Cinder very quickly found herself losing focus as her eyes followed the delicate movement of Ruby's lips.

_She's sweet enough without those cookies…_

"So, any ideas on what you wanna do?" Ruby asked as she continued to munch on her rapidly diminishing supply of chocolate delight.

Truth be told, Cinder had more than a few ideas of what she wanted to do, but many of them would be too sudden. She needed to set the mood first, not to mention find a role of tape and some scissors.

"Not really," Cinder replied. "I guess I'm up for whatever you want."

_Whatever I want, you say?_

_She didn't mean it like that!_

_Says who? You know nothing!_

_Neither do you, idiot_

_Who are you calling an idiot, dummy?_

_How very mature of you_

_You started it!_

_And we managed to get a girlfriend…_

"Um, I don't know really…" Ruby said shyly. Honestly, she wouldn't have minded a little more kissing, but she had no idea how to suggest such a thing, much less instigate it.

The two sat in relative silence, the air not uncomfortable but reaching a point where something needed to break the ever so slightly rising tension. The atmosphere grew slowly more serious as Cinder made the first move, inching only slightly closer to Ruby.

Seeing this, Ruby moved over an inch closer to Cinder. Cinder repeated the process, bringing them to half the distance they had been before. As Ruby took her turn inching closer, she finally was able to feel the soft warmth coming from the beautiful girl sitting beside her.

_How did I get so lucky?_

_Well, we do drink a lot of milk…_

_Oh yes, because that's why we were able to get an incredible girlfriend_

_Don't try this at home kids, milk is not something that should be used lightly_

_Who the hell are you talking to?_

_Me. Us. You. Duh_

_I'm done with you…_

As Cinder took her turn shifting on the bed the distance between her and her prize was finally eliminated. Cinder could feel the warmth of Ruby's thigh against her own. The rise and fall of the younger girl's chest soon matched that of her own. They looked into each other's eyes, shining silver meeting burning amber, and simply lost themselves to the view.

She could tell. There was no doubt about it. The way Cinder stared back at her proved beyond a doubt in her mind that they both wanted the same thing. But who would step up and close that few inches separating them? The space between their lips was filled with a tingling electricity, one they both reveled in, and yet also feared to get closer lest they get shocked.

They sat so close together that Ruby swore she could hear Cinder's heart beating. But perhaps that was her own. It hammered away, pounding out a heavy, steady rhythm. Ruby felt her head sway gently to the beat, back and forth. With each oscillation she could see Cinder getting closer and closer. As the distance shrank away, the beat hastened. Now the sound flooded Ruby's ears, she could feel herself nearing the other girl's face, sense her presence, taste her mouth.

Oh how sweet, the taste of another person's mouth. Ruby had never noticed before, but Cinder's mouth, it wasn't like her own. Cinder tasted of vanilla and cinnamon, a striking contrast to the chocolatey tang that persisted in Ruby's mouth. Never before had Ruby tasted something so sweet, so utterly intoxicating.

They broke apart gently, not moving away, simply taking a moment to recapture their collective breath. Cinder did not remember kissing being so oxygen depriving, then again she had only ever really kissed Ruby before so there wasn't too much room for comparison.

They held this pose for a while, reveling in the feeling of the other so close. Cinder could feel Ruby's hot breath on her neck and slowly began to blush at the new sensation. The warmth slowly spread across her face, down her neck, and even filling her chest with its fire.

The flame leapt up inside of her, pushing her forward. Taking Ruby's face in her hands, Cinder once again kissed Ruby deeply. Long gone was the pretense of innocent exploration, now Cinder knew what she wanted, and she wasn't afraid to take it.

As things grew steadily more heated, Ruby shifted her weight back. Lying back on the bed, Cinder quickly moved to close the distance, pressing herself down on the younger girl. They kept a steady rhythm, their lips dancing furiously. After she could bare it no longer, Cinder finally relented her assault on the red head to take a gasping breath.

Both girls were now panting, a mixture of excitement and oxygen deprivation. Ruby was particularly affected. The warmth that had been building within her had been steadily growing. It had now manifested itself in her stomach. She burned with longing, for what, she did not know, but the desires she felt were becoming ever more powerful.

Cinder too could feel these same longings. But she new what these feelings were. Her and her friend Mrs. removable shower head were very familiar with these feelings. But this was different from her long bath time play dates. This was wholly uncharted territory for her.

Ruby stared up at the obsidian haired goddess above her. She couldn't help but admire how that beautiful mane managed to look mysterious, dangerous, and cute, all at the same time. How could she have ever been this lucky?

But perhaps luck was not on her side, for at that moment she could suddenly hear the anguished cries of her sister from down the hall. The pain in that scream was more than enough to pull her focus away from the pretty girl and back to the real world.

_Oh shit! What was that?_

_Sounded pretty bad_

_We've gotta go!_

Jumping up one after another, Cinder and Ruby ran to the door and bolted down the hall to Yang's room. Slamming the door open, Ruby saw the scariest thing she had ever seen.

* * *

The bottle span and span, clinking against the ground as it turned. With each pass the blonde grew more and more impatient. Neo kept spinning it with all her little might, and that made for a long wait for the ever eager older girl.

With wide eyes, Yang watched as the bottle slowed and with a brief jolt came to rest. Following the bottle's neck, Yang saw that it was pointing to her left hand. She knew what that meant.

She held her hand out in front of her, flaring it dramatically while throwing her head back in mock splendor. Neo moved from her seated position and slowly crawled closer to Yang. As she got closer she began to sway oh so slightly. If Yang had been watching, she would have seen Neo's eyes take on a slanted, glowing look. She was a predator, stalking her delicious prey.

Neo's slow approach quickly escalated as she pounced on her target. Grasping Yang's hand, Neo began to assault it with her lips.

She began with the fingertips. Each one got a soft touch, not quite a kiss, but far more special than simple contact. She proceeded to make her way across each knuckle, her lips lingering more and more at each junction. Upon reaching the back of the blonde's strong hand, Neo turned the palm to face up and gave it a quick, chaste kiss.

Then a devilish thought crossed the small girl's mind. Holding out her tongue she began to trace the length of each of her partners fingers. The warm, gentle sensation made Yang's whole arm quiver. Neo smiled at the reaction she managed to elicit from her girlfriend.

Finally, to top it all off, Neo made her grand finale of taking Yang's whole thumb into her mouth and sucking gently. Yang could not help but let out a soft moan at the incredible sensation. Sensing her immense enjoyment, Neo took it one step further, biting gently on the pad of Yang's thumb. Yang groaned at the feeling, so simple and yet so very powerful.

Neo finally relented and sat back to admire her target. Yang was breathing raggedly and was almost fearful that her heart would be unable to keep up with how fast her blood had been pumping through her veins.

"That, was incredible…" Yang said breathlessly.

Neo giggled at the rather unreserved compliment, she was glad to have been able to do all that she had. There was no doubt that she had a very strong power over the girl before her. She decided she wanted to explore just how far that power extended.

"You haven't seen anything yet. That was nothing," Neo spoke easily. She had less experience with these things than she had with riding sharks. Yes, she rode sharks. But that wasn't going to stop her, all these knew feelings excited her, she wanted to explore more.

"Is that so?" Yang asked. She tried to keep her tone low and playful but it came out as rushed and eager.

"As long as you behave," admonished Neo.

As they spoke Yang watched Neo's eyes seem to breath different colors. First they grew a hot pink, which was quickly replaced with a deep purple, then a light blue. But the color that seemed to come out above all was a burning fuchsia. The smooth, red stared playfully into soft lilac, both waiting for some sign, both wanting but reserved. This would be a game of strength, strength of will, and neither girl wanted to lose.

Yang made a rather valiant effort. Staring into Neo's eyes, Yang could feel herself very slowly and then all at once losing her self control. When she found she could hold back no longer, she reached out a hand to cup Neo's face. It had been her intention to pull the younger girl into a real kiss, but it would seem that her shorter partner had other plans.

As Yang's hand came closer, Neo raised her own to meet it. But instead of intertwining their fingers as Yang had expected, Neo quickly and firmly grasped Yang's wrist and pinned it against the ground.

"Kitty's got claws," Yang joked, but her playful demeanor was long gone.

Neo simply smiled at the blonde's assessment and began to close the distance between them. First one wrist then the other, soon Yang found herself completely pinned to the floor. Her breath came in short, shallow gasps. Never before had she found herself feeling so powerless and yet, it was exhilarating. The thought of being completely at the mercy of the girl lying above her sent her into a frenzy.

"If you don't hold still I might just have to tie you down," Neo warned playfully, her voice deeper.

"I'd like to see you try," Yang retorted, challenging the smaller girl.

Neo leaned down to press her lips to Yang's ear. "You're wish is my command," she whispered, grazing her teeth along the length of Yang's ear and neck.

Yang shivered at the contact and closed her eyes as she inhaled deeply. When she opened them again she was greatly surprised by what she saw. In Neo's hand was a roll of hand bindings Yang used for boxing. The material was not very thin and was made of a rather rough cloth.

_How did she find that? And how did I not notice her get up to get it? _Yang's mind was racing.

"So are we doing this the easy way or the hard way?" Neo whispered to her prisoner of love.

"I didn't think…" Yang's voice trailed off as she saw the look in Neo's eyes. Thinking back on it, the only word that could aptly describe it would be _hunger._

"Perhaps next time you'll take me a little more seriously. But for now, I think I can help you learn your lesson," Neo teased as she shifted into a sitting position, straddling Yang's hips.

Yang couldn't find her words. All that she could think about was Neo and that roll of bindings. She was going to be bound soon, and strangest of all, she was secretly looking forward to it.

Neo began by grasping both of Yang's wrists together and wrapping the bindings around twice before breaking off the piece.

"Is that all you've got?" Yang asked challengingly, she still wanted to have fun with this.

Rather than reply, Neo instead got up and ran the bindings from between Yang's wrists to the one of the feet of Yang's bed, that should keep her in place.

"Ooh, interesting choice," Yang commended.

"Do I have to bind your mouth too?" Neo asked, feigning annoyance at the blonde's constant remarks.

Yang paled at the suggestion. "I don't think that will be necessary."

"I think it is. Maybe if you're a good girl I'll reconsider, until then though…" Neo's voice was delicious in Yang's ears. How was it that her voice alone could make Yang tremble?

"No!" Yang yelled. Her mock terror mingling with real apprehension. She trusted Neo, but the idea of having her mouth bound was a little daunting to her.

"Don't worry, I'll be gentle," Neo smiled darkly at the blonde before gently giving Yang's mouth a quick kiss followed by a thin layer of the bindings.

Neo stood to admire her handiwork. Or really to admire Yang's rocking body, but let's pretend it was for the handiwork. She began to plan her assault on the blonde beauty, formulating the perfect plan.

But what do you know, right before things got really good, Ruby and Cinder burst into the room. They both stopped and stared in terror at the effectively bound and gagged Yang lying on the floor.

"Oh my god, Yang! Are you alright?" Ruby ran over to her sister's side and began to untie the bindings. "Did someone break in? Did they take anything? Do I need to call the police?" Ruby was speaking a mile a minute and in doing so failed to notice the burning red color of Yang's face.

"No Rubes, I'm fine, I…" Yang stopped. How in the hell was she supposed to explain this to her poor, innocent, naive, little sister.

"Ruby, I think everything's alright in here, why don't we leave these two be," Cinder suggested, having a reasonable idea of what must have happened.

Ruby was puzzled by Cinder's words. How could she dismiss this so easily?

"But Cinder, Yang was," Ruby started to argue.

"She's fine," Cinder pressed. "Let's just go back to your room."

"You're sure you're alright?" Ruby asked Yang.

"Yep," Yang replied as smoothly as she could manage.

"Well, alright," Ruby finished uneasily.

Cinder took Ruby's hand and guided her out of the room, once again leaving Yang and Neo to themselves.

"That was close," Yang laughed shakily.

That whole encounter had been petrifying. But, again, Yang was surprised by just how excited the whole ordeal had made her. What was wrong with her?

* * *

"I wonder what that was all about," Ruby thought aloud as the door to her room shut behind her.

Cinder knew. Or at least had a pretty good idea. Neo did always enjoy being the one in charge.

"Let's not worry about that now," Cinder replied simply. It was getting late and she found herself reaching the limit of staying awake.

She gently threw herself down on the bed and motioned for Ruby to join her. Ruby pounced at the invitation, but found herself slightly disappointed when instead of a kiss she received only a tight embrace. But she soon returned the hug, pulling Cinder closer, feeling her against her side.

And it was like that, holding each other snugly, that they drifted off to sleep.

**A/N: And thirteen, sorry you had to wait. I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. Hopefully you enjoyed as much as I did. As always, please feel free to let me know what you think. Good or bad, any and all feedback is appreciated. In other news, less than twenty days till pax east, can't wait for that. Otherwise, keep reading, keep being awesome, till next time.**


	14. Chapter 14

_Shut up!_

_Shut up shut up shut up!_

_Damn it!_

_Who was the idiot who invented that stupid sound?_

_Damn them to heck!_

_You said it_

That sound was the freaking default ring of Ruby's scroll. Every three seconds it would loop back through its incessant dinging. Ruby tried her absolute best to ignore it. She buried her head deeper into the crook of her pillows neck, trying to muffle the retched tones but to no avail. Finally she could take it no longer.

With a lightning fast jab she ripped the scroll from her nightstand, flipped it open, hit speaker, and dropped it onto the bed. Who would dare to disturb her slumber? Who could have the audacity to steal her attention away from the beauty she was snuggled up next to? Qrow, that's who.

"Hello?" Qrow's voice came from the slim metal phone.

"MMmmm," Ruby replied, not feeling up to using real words just yet.

"It's nice to hear your lovely voice," Qrow joked. "How are you and your sister doing?"

"Fimmmm," Ruby groaned through a closed mouth.

"Good, are you planning on going anywhere today?" Qrow asked.

Ruby thought about it for a moment. She wouldn't mind going out some place with her new girlfriend. But then she felt Cinder's arms tighten around her waist and she felt herself grow rather warm at the soft touch.

_Maybe we can just stay in bed_

_Bow chicka-_

_Not like that!_

_Why not?_

"Ruby?" Qrow's voice came again, bringing Ruby out of her lewd train of thought.

"Yeah? Mmm, nahh," Ruby replied. She was going to just enjoy a nice day in with her girlfriend.

"And good job landing yourself a girlfriend, I hear she's rather cute," Qrow jested playfully.

"What? I? How? You?" Ruby was at a loss for words.

_How did he find out?_

_At least he seems okay with it_

_But that doesn't explain-_

"Your sister told me," Qrow explained, answering Ruby's unspoken question.

"Gir, stupid idiot," Ruby grumbled.

"Don't worry about it," Qrow laughed. "You come from a long line of lady killers."

"Hey!" Ruby said indignantly. She really didn't need to hear that.

"I'll leave you be," Qrow replied. "You two make sure to enjoy yourself, but no too much!"

And with that Qrow was gone. Ruby blushed at the bluntness of her uncles words.

_Stupid Yang, I'm going to give her a piece of my mind_

"Well, looks like we'll have to be more careful,"

Ruby nearly jumped out of the bed as that soft voice pulled at her ear.

"How, how long, were you listening?" Ruby asked quietly.

"Oh, I'd say about, the whole time," Cinder replied with a light laugh.

Ruby flushed at the revelation and buried her head deeper into the space between Cinder and the bed. It wouldn't be a quick death, but there were worse ways to go then suffocated by her girlfriends increasingly tantalizing upper half.

"What happened to not having too much fun?" Cinder asked playfully, placing a hand in Ruby's hair and pulling her closer.

"You too?" Ruby asked indignantly, her voice muffled by the soft fabric of Cinder's pajama top.

_It really is quite soft_

_I bet that's not the only thing that's soft_

_Hey you_

_Yes?_

_Let's, not get ahead of ourselves_

_Ooh, that's a definite YES if I've ever heard one_

"Hey Ruby?" Cinder called down to the younger girl.

"MMmm," Ruby hummed in response from somewhere below Cinder's chin.

"What do you want to do today?"

Ruby was about to say sleep. Truth be told she was still pretty tired from staying up late and the thought of just sleeping the day away with Cinder was quite appealing. But then she had a better idea, one that was sure to get her some girlfriend points.

Rising slowly from the bed, she carefully moved her lips to meet Cinder's. She gave the older girl a quick peck before smiling wickedly and responding. "You."

Cinder blushed at the lewd remark. Memories of the night before began to resurface causing her to deepen her breath. The thought of Ruby's soft lips on her own, on other parts of her body, she couldn't contain herself.

"Are you drooling?" Ruby asked, her voice a mix of amusement and surprise.

Wiping the saliva from the corner of her mouth, Cinder blushed even more. How was it possible for Ruby to have such an effect on her? They had only been together for a day, known each other a week, and yet, there was no denying how deeply connected she felt to the young girl.

"I, I'm just hungry," Cinder lied quickly.

"Hmm, hungry you say?" Ruby said playfully. "What for? Perhaps I could help, satiate you."

_Such a lascivious smile, she has no idea how powerful it is, the things it does to me._

"Um, perhaps," Cinder replied weakly. She was trying and failing oh so very miserably to recover her cool.

"Well, why don't we start here," Ruby said.

Cinder soon felt the feather light tough of lips on her own. They still tasted of chocolate, a rich, bittersweet tang. She let herself melt into her partner's advance, giving up all thoughts of control. Ruby had set a slow, even rhythm and Cinder happily followed.

Minutes passed of this deliberate, soft paced dance. Then suddenly, Cinder felt a new sensation thrown into the mix. Soft fingers began to trace the line of her collar bone. Soft at first, the feeling began to build upon the already growing fire Cinder felt in her chest.

Her breath grew ragged as Ruby moved from kissing her lips to her jaw, then her ear, then her neck. The younger girl's hot breath elicited a violent shiver and a quiet moan. As the kisses reached lower so did those delicate fingers. As hard lips pressed needily at her collar, Cinder felt those magical fingers tracing soft circles on her flat stomach.

Large, lazy swirls gave way to focused and tender strokes. Those graceful digits twirled back and forth, up and down, tracing the formidable boundary of the obsidian haired girl's waist line. With deliciously painful slowness, Cinder felt the elastic of her pants stretched open. Those devilish points of teasing salaciousness, how they burned on her skin.

And then her mind stopped working. Overtaken by sensation, by pure bliss, Cinder let herself go.

Falling. That's what it felt like. Her body was weightless. She could swear she had died and gone to heaven. With Ruby's loving ministrations, Cinder felt herself flying higher and higher. The previously kindled ember had quickly grown into a raging inferno, consuming all in its path. There was no room for thoughts or feelings, only one emotion could reach through to her.

Love. She felt so wanted, so important. She felt as though she were the center of the universe. She wasn't alone anymore. No longer would she have to cry herself to sleep. Never again would she feel alone. This was her place now. By Ruby's side, in Ruby's arms, Ruby.

And at that she fell apart. Scattered, like a thousand cherry blossoms. She gripped the sheets tightly, pulling herself back down to earth. It took several minutes before she could catch her breath, even longer before she could open her eyes. When they finally did flutter open she was met with a beautiful sight.

There was Ruby, lying on her side next to her, her head propped up on her hand. Her eyes shone brightly, amusement and awe at what had transpired, at what she had done to the older girl. A warm smile was painted on her lips, trying hide her slight embarrassment at just how intimate their encounter had become.

"That was, that was incredible," Cinder whispered breathlessly.

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," Ruby teased, her smile changing to a more pleased grin.

Cinder took a moment to collect herself before responding.

"Yes well, I guess now it's your turn."

* * *

"Now it's my turn," the blonde purred, making the shorter girl tremble with excitement.

The older girl had already done her part, leaving the colorful young lady in her arms with ragged breath and flushed cheeks. Now it was the taller girls time to shine. Yang had already gotten a taste of what the petite girl had to offer. The strange new brand of loving unexpectedly appealing to the blonde.

"What have you got this time?" the older girl murmured softly, already quivering in anticipation.

"You'll just have to wait and see," Neo breathed back before a naughty thought reached her head. "Or maybe you won't."

Yang shivered with excitement before suddenly realizing just what the young girl had meant. The blind fold seemed to appear out of thin air, and Yang only caught a brief glimpse of it before it was settled over her wide lilac eyes.

Without her sense of vision, Yang suddenly found herself much more aware of the sounds and sensation she was experiencing. Soft hands manipulated her appendages, shifting her around the bed. She felt the bed lift as Neo slipped off and heard the soft patter of footsteps as Neo crossed the room and returned a moment later.

Yang could barely contain herself. If last night was any indicator then whatever was to come was guaranteed to be mind-blowing. A firm tug on her ankles brought her back to the present. The unseen hands pulled her legs apart and suddenly they were tied in place. Just like that she went from lying peacefully in bed to hot and bothered, strung out and on display, and she loved it.

"Is that all?" she called playfully, challenging her captor, daring her to take it to the next level.

"Oh don't you worry your pretty little head, the best has yet to come," the omnipotent voice breathed hotly into her ear.

She shuddered at the surprising closeness of it. Already she could feel the fire inside roaring, growling in its hunger. The heat increased tenfold when the sound of a muted buzzing reached her ears.

_How did she find it? I swear I hid it in the drawer. Not that I'm complaining…_

The soft hum drew closer and closer till she could feel the gentle vibrations against her jaw. She grasped the sheets in her fists and drew a long appreciative moan at the wondrous sensation. The magical feeling traveled along her face and down her neck causing her breathing to spike and her appreciation to grow more vocal.

"Hush now, I wouldn't want you catching more unwanted attention. It would be a shame if we had a repeat of last night. I wouldn't want to have to explain this," the voice drawled.

Yang only gave out a hearty laugh as she continued to voice her praise.

"I din't want to have to do this, but it would seem you have given me no choice," the voice said.

Yang very suddenly became aware of a distinct lack of pressure on her body, or the bed for that matter. It was as though her invisible lover had vanished. Then suddenly she felt a forceful tug at her waist as she was relieved of her last remnants of clothing. Almost immediately she felt the rather familiar silk on her face. It was drawn across her mouth preventing her from voicing any objection, not that she had any.

She began to wonder how the panties had managed to get around whatever had been holding her ankles in place, but was quickly distracted by an oh so familiar scent. She hadn't realized before just how excited her girlfriend was making her, but now it was very apparent. The silk was wet, like, Niagra Falls in her pants wet.

Yang struggled to speak through the soaked garment but immediately resigned herself to her fate when she once again felt the gentle buzz on her skin. This time it was faster, more insistent than before. She let herself go, losing all rational thought as sensation encompassed the whole of her being. Higher and higher she climbed, each step greater than the last, each rung another level of exquisite agony.

When it was finished and the blindfold was removed and her ankles were freed, Yang found herself cuddling a very warm Neo. Together they lay smiling, exhausted by the morning's activities but happy to simply be together. Yang basked in the afterglow of perfection, in awe of the short girl beside her. She never wanted to leave her side, never wanted to have to go without her.

"Yang," the girl murmured from her spot by the blonde's side.

"Yes, beautiful?" Yang responded with her normal confidant cheer.

"I love you," Neo whispered.

Yang smiled at the adorable words and their adorable delivery. "I love you too."

* * *

"Hey you two," Ruby called as the door to the kitchen swung open.

"Good morning Rubes," Yang replied brightly, still basking in afterglow.

"You guys sleep well?" Ruby inquired.

Yang and Neo made their way to the table and sat down beside each other. Sharing a conspiratorial grin they replied in unison. "You could say that."

"That's good," Cinder mused, her own thoughts drifting back to the pleasant memory of being cuddled up with her new girlfriend.

_Wow, it feels good to be able to say that._

"So, any idea what we want to do today?" Ruby asked to no one in particular.

Almost in perfect synchronization, they all shrugged their shoulders and gave a very non committal "eh."

"Come on, their must be something," Ruby whined. She really wanted to do something with her partner that wasn't doing her partner.

"Oh, I have an idea!" Yang exclaimed as she jumped to her feet.

"Yeah?" Ruby said, excitement dripping from her mouth.

"Yep, it's gonna be great!" Yang said, smiling widely.

"What is it?" Ruby asked, getting annoyed at her sisters obvious avoidance of her question.

"Oh, don't worry about it. Just get changed into something you don't mind getting a little, dirty," Yang replied before running down the hall.

Neo hopped up giggling and followed the rambunctious blonde.

"Ugh, nothing is ever easy with her," Ruby groaned as her head hit the table.

"I'm sure it'll be fine, besides, as long as we're together, who cares?" Cinder comforted.

"You're right. As long as I have you, I have everything I need." Ruby smiled.

_Mmm, how right you are_

**A/N: Hello. I'm sorry this chapter took so long. I had computer issues and idea issues but that's really no excuse. Hopefully you enjoyed regardless. The story is almost over, only another chapter or two to go. If you have anything you want to see before it's over let me know. As always, let me know what you think, I'm always eager to know what's good and what need improving. Otherwise, keep reading, keep being awesome, till next time.**

**As an aside, I'm already brainstorming for my next story. It's going to be a little different from what I've done so far, being a little more action/angsty. Super brownie points if you can guess the pairing. So keep an eye out for that, it should be up in the next two weeks. If you have something you want to see let me know, I don't mind throwing in some fan ideas.**

**Edit: Fixed a word**


	15. Chapter 15

The bullets rained down in a cacophony of angry blasts. Running from cover to cover, ducking at every opportunity, this was the only way Ruby was getting out of here alive. Tears flowed freely down her face, memorializing her fallen comrades.

_En pace requiem mea cupita_

But it was not sadness that filled her. She was teeming with emotion, practically bursting at the seams. But it was anger. Blind fury. Utter contempt that comprised her very being. The utmost loathing for her assailant that spurred her on. She would not let Cinder die in vane. She would not rest until vengeance was hers.

Crouched behind a car, she began to formulate her plan. This would not be easy, but what fun is there in that? She would need to be quick, she would need to be cunning, she would need to… pay attention.

The bullet hit her just above the heart. As soon as it did, red flowed readily from her chest. She lay on her back, gasping for breath as another projectile landed inches below the first. This was it. Her life flashed before her eyes. It was all a blur to her. The only thing she could truly see in focus was her. Cinder.

As her breath slowed she heard swaggering footsteps approach. How that sound infuriated her even then. She shivered, partly from the cold that had begun to envelop her and partly out of anger at that wretched person. The sound grew louder before stopping to her right. She glowered at her murderer. If looks could kill…

"Oh please, it's just paint. You don't have to be such a drama queen," Yang teased, cocking her gun and leaning it over her shoulder.

Yep, you guessed it. Paintball. They were out playing paintball. I bet you thought shit was going down. Gotcha!

"Rosebud," Ruby whispered before finally 'dying'.

"Is it over?" Cinder called. She had not been particularly good at this game. She enjoyed it, but there's only so much fun you can have when you're the first one out twelve games in a row.

"Yeah," Yang shouted back. "Ruby's still being a little miss melodrama."

"Am not!" Ruby yelled. "I'm just playing the part."

"Sure you are," Yang placated. "Come on. That was our last game. It's time for food."

"I can't get up," Ruby said.

"Come on Rubes, I don't have the energy to play games with you." Yang moaned, trudging towards the exit of the arena.

"No Yang, I'm serious!" Ruby replied in distress.

"I'll get someone right on it," Yang said before doubling her pace.

At the door she met Neo and Cinder. The two were talking quietly, giggling every so often. Yang couldn't help but admire her girlfriend. She made paint covered jeans and t-shirt look damn good.

"Hey Cinder, your girlfriend is gonna need a hand out there." Yang said, her attention clearly focused on Neo.

"And why couldn't her sister help her?" Cinder replied, sighing over dramatically.

"She wanted you," Yang answered easily.

"Fine, I'll be back shortly," Cinder said before plodding over to where Ruby remained fallen.

"Heh, she said shortly," Yang giggled at her witty remark. Neo was unamused.

"I would be careful what I say if I were you," Neo warned, a dark smile on her face.

Yang swallowed sharply. She knew all too well what the shorter girl was capable of. But was she just going to take that lying down? Or should she push her luck to the breaking point?

The second one. Definitely the second one.

"Why? Are you going to steal my height?" she teased.

Neo's eyed widened at the remark but she quickly countered. "No, but I've always wanted a little blonde in my hair."

Yang paled at those words. No one came between her and her hair. Even the thought made her shudder. It looks like Neo won, this time.

"Ok, ok," Yang said quickly. "I give, I'm sorry I said anything."

Neo simply giggled at the blonde's defeat. It was good to be queen. Just then Ruby and Cinder walked over. Well, it was more like Cinder walked over and Ruby kinda hobbled along while leaning heavily on Cinder.

"Come on Rubes, you gotta let it go, it's just a game," Yang said.

"I don't wanna talk about it," Ruby grumbled, burying her face into Cinder's shoulder.

"Fine, where do we want to go to eat?" Yang asked to no one in particular.

"I've heard good things about this place called _The Wick._ It's supposed to be really good," Ruby said, slowly losing the kicked puppy act.

"Oh yeah, that place is supposed to be fantastic. It's probably even better than _The landfill_ or whatever that place is called," Yang recalled.

"It's settled then, _The Wick _it is," Ruby declared.

* * *

Not more than half an hour later the four girls found themselves sat in booths munching on some damn good food. Ruby sat on one side with Cinder while Yang and Neo sat opposite them. They chatted here and there between bites but for the most part they simply enjoyed the food and present company.

As their late lunch was coming to an end, Cinder felt a buzz coming from her pants. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out her phone to see that the call was from her mother. Odd. She flipped it open and held the device up to her ear.

"Hello?" Cinder greeted uneasily. She never got calls, much less from her mom.

"Yeah, sweetheart, we just got back from the office, got some news." Her mother's voice was off. It sounded weird. Excited, but somehow devoid of any real joy.

"What is it?" Cinder asked, her tone lowering, feeling uneasy about what might come.

"Well, you know how you've always wanted to travel to Vacuo?" her mother's voice asked.

_NO! I'VE NEVER WANTED TO GO THERE! I'VE NEVER WANTED TO GO ANYWHERE! IT'S ALWAYS YOU AND YOUR STUPID JOB!_

"I guess," Cinder murmured.

"Well a new position opened up there for me AND your father, fancy that. It would be a pretty nice promotion," her mom went on and on about how good it would be for the family.

As this horrible train wreck of a conversation continued, Ruby could feel her girlfriend grow steadily more and more uncomfortable with every passing second. She placed what she hoped was a reassuring hand on Cinder's knee and gave her the biggest smile she could manage.

Cinder brightened up at the younger girl's actions if only a little. And then it occurred to Cinder. If they moved she might never see Ruby again. If they left now everything she had managed to build would fall apart. She would lose everything. Everything she had finally been able to find.

"…and we could even-"

Cinder cut her mother off abruptly. "No!"

"Excuse me?" her mother's voice came.

Yang and Neo turned to listen after hearing Cinder's forceful outburst.

"I said no. We can't move. Not now, not again." Cinder pleaded.

"Honey, this is just how it is. I'm sorry it's difficult, but it is what it is," her mother's voice drooped down to a more somber tone.

Cinder began to shake. Tears streamed freely from her eyes before her phone fell into her lap and snapped close. She leaned over and buried her head into Ruby's shoulder, holding on as though her life depended on it. Ruby was completely caught off guard but quickly adjusted to the situation, stroking Cinder's hair and whispering comforting words softly to her.

Yang and Neo sat on the other side of the table completely dumbstruck. Well, Yang was dumbstruck, Neo wasn't. It had happened before. Only one thing could make her sister react like that. Just the thought of it made Neo tremble. But unlike her sister, she was not on the verge of tears. No, she was on the verge of fucking shit up.

After all these years of living months at a time, never having friends, never enjoying life, she had finally found someone. Someone who made her life brighter, who could make her smile, who gave her one more reason to get out of bed in the morning. She wasn't about to give that up. No, it would have to be pried from her cold, dead hands.

"Cinder," Neo called. Her voice was sharp, barely concealing the fire burning beneath the surface.

Cinder looked up from her spot on Ruby's shoulder and replied. "Yeah girly?"

"I think we need to head home and have a little face to face with our beloved parents. What do ya say?" Neo asked, her voice becoming an almost wicked sneer.

If Cinder noticed any difference she paid it no mind. "Ok," she replied hesitantly, not wanting to leave Ruby.

The two stood up slowly and grabbed their coats.

"I'm sorry to be leaving you like this, but we'll hopefully see you later, today perhaps," Neo called over her shoulder before the door to the restaurant closed behind her.

Yang and Ruby shared a look. They were scared for their girlfriends. They could't lose them. Not now. Not so soon. The world couldn't be that cruel.

_Please, please let everything be alright_

**A/N: And we're rounding the last corner. Only one more chapter left. Hopefully you enjoyed as much as I did, I bet I got a couple of people fooled with that opening. As always I'd love to hear what you think, so by all means leave a review, let me know. Otherwise, keep reading, keep being awesome, till next time.**

**In addition, once this story is finished I'll be starting a new one. It's definitely going to be a lot more action-y but don't let that fool you, there's still going to be lots of laughs and fluff (and, other things). No one has guessed the main pairing yet, but a few have come close. One of them is definitely Cinder though. Good luck guessing the others.**


	16. Chapter 16

Three hours. Three whole hours. Ruby turned her gaze away from the clock and continued to nervously pace back and forth in the den. It had been like this ever since she had gotten home. Unable to find words, Yang had slumped off to her room and Ruby had begun to cut a channel into the floor as she walked back and forth and back and forth.

Her thoughts were incoherent and her mind was a storm of emotions. How could this be happening? She wanted to cry, how could the world be so unfair? Tears were pouring steadily from her eyes, hurricanes of raw feelings. But her tears were not of sadness or despair. Those glassy, unfocused orbs held nothing but contempt and loathing. How dare they try and take Cinder from her? The audacity of those people.

The sound of glass shattering brought Ruby back to the present and she immediately realized just how upset she had become. Glass littered the floor around her and covered the sofa in its sharp slices. In her hand were the sparse remains of her tea cup, now reduced to half a handle and most of a tea bag.

"Damn it," Ruby muttered. Of course something like this would happen to her.

Ruby began to try to find some way of cleaning up the mess before she heard the door creak open behind her. Whipping around, she was disappointed to see it was only Yang. The blonde entered the room slowly, mindful of the broken glass.

"Hey there Rubes, you alright?" Yang asked, her voice quivering, betraying how not alright she felt.

"I'm, I'm, I can't do this," Ruby moaned. "They can't leave, they can't!"

Yang stepped closer and pulled her little sister into a tight embrace. She tried to open her mouth. Tried to find the words to comfort Ruby. But she couldn't even find the thoughts to reassure herself that everything would turn out okay.

They held each other close, slowly letting out their tears, slowly releasing the horrible, oppressing tension that had managed to overwhelm them. Ruby was the first to cry herself out. When no more tears came she took a shuddering breath before finally pulling herself together, or at least that's what she told herself.

"Why don't we go make some more tea," she suggested quietly.

When Yang did not object, Ruby began to lead her older sister by the hand towards the kitchen. With the shattered mug forgotten, Ruby went about putting together two new cups of tea for Yang and herself. She chose chamomile, partly because it was meant to calm the body and partly because it reminded her of her mother, the rock she had clung to and admittedly still clung to.

With steaming brew in hand, the two sisters sat at the table with their heads in their hands and began the most excruciating waiting game they had ever experienced. The minutes crawled by, each one longer than the last. Both girls stared silently at the clock, watching the time pass, or rather not pass, begging for a knock on the door, or a ring of the phone, anything. Another hour passed like this, the sun completing its descent and the moon coming out to light the world with its dismal glow.

Yang contemplated calling Neo, sending her a text, something, but she just couldn't bring herself to do it. She needed to know everything would be alright. But she wasn't sure she would be able to handle hearing anything else. And it wasn't just about her either. She had to be strong for Ruby as well. How could she possibly manage to do that if she heard the horrible truth?

The hours continued to trickle by, each one cutting away more and more at the small string of hope Ruby had left. She tried, truly she did, but before she could stop herself, Ruby fell face first into the table exhausted.

_Stupid chamomile! I totally forgot you make me sleepy!_

Yang had already drifted of, albeit a little less violently. The two girls slept restlessly as the moon traveled its path across the sky and eventually disappeared into the sea beyond. Nightmares of losing girlfriends forever and being sad forever plagued them both. Never had either of them experienced a night so void of light.

* * *

Eventually, the sun made its glorious return to the land of the living. As its first rays shone through the kitchen window, Ruby began to stir. Her head was throbbing with a dull ache. Her eyes felt raw and empty. Slowly the events of the previous day drifted back to her and she redoubled over in despair. Her muffled lamentation roused her sister and consequently brought her into the little pity party they had set up.

The room was filled with the painful sound of silent sobbing and knuckles on hard wood.

"Yang, don't break the table," Ruby groaned, still managing to be somewhat responsible even in her current state.

"I'm not hitting the table," Yang moaned back.

The sisters grew silent for a moment and listened to the sound of, knocking?

"The door!" Ruby exclaimed, jumping up from her seat and bolting to the front of the house.

Yang followed Ruby at a distance, eager to find out who it was, but terrified of what might come. She came to a stop just behind her sister who had halted a foot before the front door. The knocking continued but Ruby remained frozen in place. She tried to lift her arm to reach the door knob, tried with all her heart. But her heart felt heavy and her head felt fearful. But she had to be brave.

The door swung open to reveal Cinder and Neo standing side by side, hand in hand. The girls had their heads down and their faces hidden from view. Both of them were quivering, unable to keep themselves still. From the shorter of the two came a small, somber voice.

"We came to say goodbye."

* * *

Yang and Ruby were crushed. How could this happen? Why did it have to happen to them? Why was the world so cruel? Ruby felt new tears spring up to her eyes and she quickly brought her hands up to her face to wipe them away. Yang stood unmoving. She was still trying to process how such a thing was possible. She just couldn't make sense of it. And she found it particularly difficult to come to terms with what was happening with Cinder and Neo rolling on the floor laughing their asses off.

_Wait, what the fuck?_

"Oh my god! Your face!" Neo exclaimed from her position on the ground.

Puzzled, Yang and Ruby stopped and stared at the absolutely insane sight before them. Instead of bawling their eyes out, screaming to the world how unfair it all was, their girlfriends were laughing their fucking asses off.

"What the hell is this?" Yang asked, confusion overpowering her anguish.

Neo took a gasping breath before responding. "We're not going anywhere silly. Gotcha!"

Yang was still for a moment. Still as a statue. A towering, threatening, red eyed statue that was ready to go on a Neo killing rampage. Then she was happy. Overjoyed that her girlfriend wasn't leaving her, was never leaving her. She scooped the small girl up and gave her a bone crushing hug.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again!" She cried, holding Neo tighter.

"So, you're not going?" Ruby asked hesitantly, feeling as though it were all too good to be true.

"No," Cinder replied gently. "We're not leaving for a long time."

Ruby bounced with joy before embracing Cinder with even more enthusiasm than Yang had had with Neo. The two couples stood like that for near a minute before someone suggested they head inside for a better explanation of exactly what had happened the previous night.

* * *

"So, as you know, we left you guys around three yesterday," Neo began. They were all sitting around the kitchen table, couples holding hands. "I was so damn mad I thought I was going to lose it. We made our way back home and along the way came up with our plan of attack."

"Don't call it that," Cinder chimed in. "We weren't going to war, we just needed to explain the situation."

"Aww, but that sounds soooo lame!" Neo complained. Yang smiled at the adorable outburst.

"Anyway," Cinder continued. "We decided what we wanted to tell out parents on our way back home. It was a longer walk than we expected, but we got home before four. When we did finally get there, I was somehow surprised to find the house empty."

"Yep, so we waited. And waited. And waited. It was awful!" Neo moaned.

"That's why we're only here telling you about it now," Cinder explained. "We waited till close to eight o'clock before our parents finally came home. When they did, we sat them down in the living room and had a nice family chat."

"Can't believe we didn't do it sooner," Neo butted in. "I guess it took you two to bring out this kind of strength in us." Neo smiled abashedly at Ruby and Yang, mostly Yang.

"Well, that's, that's good to hear," Yang replied weakly, entranced by the reverent look she was receiving from Neo.

"Back to the story," Cinder cut in. "We sat them down and we had probably our first heart to heart in a real long time. We explained how hard moving was for us, how much we like it here, how we can't possibly leave, now or ever. I don't think they ever realized before now just how difficult all this moving has been for us."

_And we finally connected, like a family should._

"But we're here to stay!" Neo exclaimed, smiling widely.

"Yep," Cinder added. "Won't be getting rid of us that easily."

* * *

The sun was setting over the ocean once again and everything felt right in the world. Despite the emotional roller coaster experienced over the past sixteen hours, Ruby could not be happier. She had Cinder, truly had her for good. Nothing would stand between them now.

"Ruby?" Cinder called from her cozy place buried in the crimsonette's side.

"Yes, my dear?" Ruby replied, her fancy suave voice in full effect.

Cinder giggled at Ruby's silliness. "Should people be allowed to feel this happy?"

Ruby turned to Cinder and took one of those delicate hands into her own. She kissed each knuckle softly between each word. "No. No this is all for you, my dear."

**A/N: BOOOM, and that's all she wrote. Beautiful, right? Please don't kill me. Hopefully you enjoyed this roller coaster of a final chapter. As always I'm eager to hear what you think, so leave me a note, good or bad. If you liked this you'll probably enjoy the next story I'll have coming out soonish. It will be a fabulous story by the name of "The Collector", featuring some truly groundbreaking relationships, if I do say so myself. Otherwise, thank you for joining me on this wonderful adventure, may we meet again in an even greater story. Remember, keep reading, keep being awesome, till next time.**


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